Lebanese Ministry of Information
A preparatory meeting was held this Tuesday at the Ministry of Information, between caretaker Minister of Information, Manal Abdel Samad, Health Minister Hamad Hassan, and head of the National Committee for Vaccination, Abdel-Rahman Al-Bizri.
The meeting discussed the content of the draft media plan prepared by the Ministry of Information on the coronavirus vaccine, in preparation for launching it next Thursday at 1:00 pm.
Abdel Samad noted that the aim of the campaign was to dispel people’s concerns over the coronavirus vaccine, which arose as a result of a wave of rumors that lacked any scientific basis.”
She stressed “the importance of the role that the media can play in this sensitive health stage,” deeming it essential and critical in guiding citizens and refuting false news.
She expressed her ministry’s readiness to “help fight misleading news, especially through the FactCheck Lebanon application, which the Ministry of Health can use to highlight false vaccine news and deliver the correct information to citizens.”
Hassan, in turn, said: “The technical scientific committee that was formed in the Ministry of Public Health, in cooperation with the National Vaccination Committee, secured the best types of vaccines through early contacts and agreements.”
“The plan drawn up by Dr. El-Bizri and the committee’s team is accurate, targeted, clear, and easy to implement with the certification of international references, the World Bank and the World Health Organization,” he asserted.
Hassan pointed out that “it is necessary to form a public opinion in support of taking the vaccine freely and consciously,” considering this to be “the role of the media plan that we will work to implement with international partners and international organizations.”
“People in Lebanon are divided into two groups: the first is eager to receive the vaccine and thus rushed to register its names on the platform on the first day of its launch. The second is hesitant. Our duty here is to motivate, direct and encourage this second category to receive the vaccine by shedding light on scientific data and indicators that confirm its positive results. In Europe and America, the death rate has decreased significantly, and the need for intensive care has thus declined,” the minister explained.
NNA
