Young Jordanian volunteers help fight misinformation, build trust in COVID vaccine

AMMAN — Jordan has one of the youngest populations in the world, with 63 per cent of its population under the age of 30, according to UNICEF. 

UNICEF has focused on finding innovative solutions to sustain learning and engaging young people in order to address the challenges imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic to the youth.

Shabab Elak o Feed is a youth volunteering initiative led by the Ministry of Youth, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Ministry of Trade, Nahno, The Royal Health Awareness Society and UNICEF. It is generously supported by the governments of Canada, Japan, Germany and the United States’ Department of State, and Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, according to UNICEF. 

Nahno, Jordan’s National Platform for Volunteering and Engagement is a programme implemented by Naua, a Crown Prince Foundation (CPF) Initiative supported by UNICEF.

This initiative in collaboration with Ministry of Health trained volunteers on how to combat misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines, reassuring the public by raising awareness on the safety and efficacy of vaccines, and assisting the elderly to register online to receive their vaccine. The combined efforts of these volunteers in response to the pandemic are leading to the collective goal of community recovery, according to UNICEF.

“UNICEF-supported the Shabab Elak o Feed volunteering initiative which was introduced to invest in Jordan’s youth, encourage their participation and mobilise them to partake in combatting the spread of COVID-19 in Jordan.” Tanya Chapuisat, UNICEF Representative in Jordan told The Jordan Times.

Chapuisat noted that volunteers were trained on COVID-19 immunisation information, community engagement skills, and behavioral change approaches, providing them with critical messages and basic information that will “assist in informing the public about the vaccine and encourage them to take it while adhering to safety measures and practices”.

The national campaign objective is to inform, engage and empower the public through timely and consistent messages on the pandemic. 

“The campaign circulated key messages from trusted sources of information and helped counter misinformation, allowing significant behavioural change towards the effectiveness of the health measures and the COVID-19 vaccine, and ultimately helping in reducing the spread of COVID-19.” Chapuisat added.

She added that the Elak O Feed national campaign created “one reliable platform to counter misinformation, rumours and myths. As vaccination roll-out began, the campaign aimed to raise awareness, combat vaccine hesitancy and correct misconceptions, targeting different communities in rural and urban areas as well as refugee camps.

Chapuisat pointed out that the volunteers had a difficulty countering myths and misinformation circulating on social media, as well as fighting some people’s aversion to a particular vaccine brand among other challenges.

“Shabab Elak o Feed mobilised Jordanian youth, demonstrating once again that youth are a driving force in engaging their communities, and they are willing to engage their peers to achieve desirable change. The volunteers assisted in the registration of approximately 2,000 people on the national vaccine platform.” Chapuisat said.

Sojoud is one of the many young volunteers in the initiative. She noted that volunteering doe not only help the beneficiaries but also the volunteers themselves. 

“Volunteering taught me so much about myself. It improved my communication skills,” she said. Sojoud took pride in the fact that she had the opportunity to serve her people and her homeland, according to a UNICEF statement.