Experiences of COVID-19 and Perspectives on Vaccination: Key Findings from a Survey in Two Informal Settlements in Freetown

This brief outlines key findings from a survey carried out in two informal settlements in Freetown in April 2021, focusing on their perspectives of the COVID-19 pandemic, the national response to the virus and willingness to take a COVID-19 vaccine. The study was carried out by the Sierra Leone Urban Research Centre (SLURC) and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical medicine (LSHTM). Our findings point to high concern with COVID-19 in these communities, primarily related to the livelihood impact of the pandemic. Most respondents signaled that they would be unable to isolate a sick household member in their household, but also showed high awareness of and self-reported adherence to public health measures. The majority of respondents thought the government was making good decisions to respond to the pandemic at the time of the survey. For those whose trust in government had decreased since the onset of the pandemic, concerns about survival and food and job security were important reasons. Respondents who showed willingness to take a COVID-19 vaccine if offered one emphasized their wish to protect themselves and their communities, whilst hesitancy was associated primarily with concerns about vaccine safety. Hesitancy was more likely amongst those who are hesitant of vaccines in general, who had not heard of new variants (and may therefore have been less concerned about the virus) and those whose trust in government was partial to begin with or had decreased due to the pandemic. We conclude by putting forward key recommendations for addressing these issues with a focus on targeted community engagement, dynamic and adaptive pandemic response measures and specific efforts to build trust in the health system and the pandemic response. These findings are a snapshot from April 2021, but they highlight trends and characteristics of vaccine confidence to be monitored as the pandemic situation progresses