Assessing the Supply Chain of Polio Vaccines and the Performance of the Expanded Programme on Immunization: A Case Study of the Central Coordination of the EPI, Cameroon

Purpose: This study This study evaluates how polio vaccine supply chain practices—specifically stock availability, cold chain capacity, delivery timeliness, monitoring and cross-functional communication—relate to the operational performance of the EPI at the Central Coordination in Cameroon. of the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) in Cameroon, specifically focusing on the Central Coordination (CC EPI). Problem: The highly sensitive nature of vaccine products contrasts sharply with logistical vulnerabilities at CC EPI, including inadequate storage facilities, limited negative cold chain infrastructure, and transport delays. These bottlenecks threaten vaccine potency and programme efficiency. Methodology: A combined exploratory, descriptive, and correlational research design was deployed. Utilising a census technique due to the compact nature of the target population, data was collected from all 30 employees of CC EPI via structured questionnaires, field observations, and interviews. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS and Microsoft Excel, Inferential analysis used Pearson correlations and an OLS multiple regression; the number of predictors, collinearity diagnostics and assumption checks are reported, together with a note on the precision limits imposed by the small census sample. . Results: Inferential analysis confirmed that vaccine supply chain factors strongly explain variance in EPI performance (R² = 0.733, p = 0.001). Vaccine stockouts exhibited a significant negative correlation with performance (r = −0.473, p = 0.008), indicating that higher stockout frequency is associated with lower EPI performance. Vaccine stockouts were significantly associated with performance (r = 0.473, p = 0.008), with the direction of the association and the corresponding regression coefficient reported in Table X. , while delivery delays compromised scheduled immunization programmes. Conversely, Robust monitoring systems (r = 0.629, p = [value]) and clear cross-functional communication (r = 0.695, p = [value]) demonstrated strong positive relationships with performance. . Conclusion: The null hypothesis was rejected, indicating that vaccine supply chain efficiency is strongly associated with EPI performance at CC EPI; causal direction cannot be established from this cross-sectional design. The null hypothesis was rejected, indicating a statistically significant association between vaccine supply chain efficiency and EPI performance. Given the cross-sectional, single-site design, causality cannot be established and reverse causality cannot be ruled out. The null hypothesis was rejected, indicating a strong association between vaccine supply chain efficiency and EPI performance; given the cross-sectional design, causal direction cannot be established and should be examined in future longitudinal work. To achieve optimal immunization coverage, targeted investments must be directed toward expanding negative cold room capacity, modernizing refrigerated distribution fleets, and formalizing SMT training.