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LONDON: A British Muslim has launched a campaign to provide clear and accessible information about COVID-19 vaccines in a bid to counter the “wild” misinformation surrounding them.

Kawsar Zaman, a successful advocate who launched the Take the COVID-19 vaccine campaign, told Arab News that it was important to provide him with meaningful and accessible information when he tried to persuade his mother trust in science.

“I asked her if she wanted to be vaccinated, and although she is in a high-risk area, she said no.” She was concerned about side effects and the rapid pace of vaccine development – just 12 months, ”he said.

When she tried to find information to accept her concerns in her native Bengali language, she realized how difficult it is to get accessible information about the vaccines, especially if English is not a person ‘s main language.

That’s why he launched his campaign with a clear and simple intention: “To encourage people to get vaccinated.”

Zaman said: “What I have found is that information at the moment is very small. If you want to find out about making vaccines, for example, you need to go to the website of the British government healthcare regulatory body or the World Health Organization website. But if you want to find out about specific vaccine products, you need to go directly to the manufacturer’s website. “

He said: “What we have done, and had as one of the main aims, is to bring all that information under one website.”

It provides key information about the vaccines, and addresses around 50 of the most commonly asked questions about them. Crucially, he said, the information is provided in 18 languages.

Zaman said the inclusion of many languages ​​is important when looking at the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the indigenous minority ethnic numbers of the UK.

He cited the example of Bangladeshis living in the UK, who are twice as likely, and in some areas three times more likely, to die from COVID-19.

Despite this, “vaccine uptake has been very low among some minority ethnic groups, while deaths and cases have been high,” he said.

“But if people can’t get clear information about vaccines, you’ll understand how difficult they are.”

Zaman explained that historical trust issues from minority groups, as well as government messaging strategies that do not connect with their intended audience, have made these communities less willing to be vaccinated. .

This is exacerbated by the ability of misinformation, such as the widespread perception that vaccines are not halal, to spread “like wildfire” through close-knit families and communities.

But while the challenges remain important in countering the spread of this dangerous false news, Zaman said the value of his campaign has already been recognized at the highest levels of government.

The campaign has attracted bipartisan support from more than 100 MPs and members of the House of Lords.

Zaman said Lord Sheikh of Cornhill “has been heavily involved in advocating and raising issues about vaccination in Parliament.”

Zaman has also met with the vaccines action group, and will soon meet with Nadhim Zahawi, who oversees the UK vaccine distribution.

Over the course of those meetings, Zaman said, he has been coming home to the point that having local hubs and community leaders is involved in increasing confidence in the vaccines.

“Local church leaders, local imams, have a vital role to play in encouraging vaccination by encouraging people to trust the experts,” he said.

“We need to persuade people. It is ultimately a medical question. We need to get the message across about risk balancing, you should get vaccinated. “

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