Bangladesh has launched an emergency vaccination campaign following a fast-spreading measles outbreak suspected of killing more than 100 people, predominantly children, in what may be the country's most lethal wave of the disease in recent history. According to health ministry data, there have been over 7,500 suspected measles cases since March 15, with more than 900 confirmed—a sharp increase from 2025, when just 125 measles cases were recorded throughout the entire year.
While Bangladesh has long vaccinated children against the highly contagious disease, the recent outbreak has exposed gaps in its immunization program, raising significant concern. Rana Flowers, the UNICEF representative in Bangladesh, stated, "Vaccines are foundational to child survival," adding that the current measles outbreak is "putting thousands of children, especially the youngest and most vulnerable, at serious risk." In Bangladesh, routine measles vaccines are administered to children as young as nine months old, but Shahriar Sajjad, deputy director of the Health Department, told BBC Bangla that about one-third of those infected in the recent outbreak were under nine months old.
In addition to routine vaccinations, Bangladesh conducts special measles vaccination campaigns every four years. However, these campaigns have not proceeded as planned. Sajjad reported that there have been no special measles vaccination campaigns since 2020, initially due to Covid and later because of the "political situation." Bangladesh experienced political upheaval in 2024 when massive anti-government protests toppled its long-ruling leader Sheikh Hasina. An interim government took over after Hasina's ousting, and only in February this year did the country elect a new government. A measles vaccination campaign was supposed to be held in April this year, "but it did not happen."
A health official cited procurement issues leading to a shortage of vaccines, including for measles, as reported by the Daily Star. Many in Bangladesh have blamed the vaccine shortages on the former interim government, which oversaw a new vaccine procurement system. However, UNICEF noted in its statement that measles resurgences "are typically the result of these accumulated gaps rather than a single factor." Bangladesh has a strong history of high immunization coverage, but even small disruptions can lead to the gradual accumulation of immunity gaps over time.
Along with international partners such as UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO), Bangladesh has launched an emergency vaccination campaign for measles and rubella, a milder disease with symptoms similar to measles. This campaign, which started on Sunday, will be rolled out across 30 upazilas (sub-districts) in Bangladesh and targets more than 1.2 million children between six months and five years old. According to UNICEF, the campaign will prioritize "children who have missed routine immunization and are most vulnerable to severe illness and complications." There will also be a particular focus on Dhaka, the densely populated capital, and Cox's Bazar, home to crowded Rohingya refugee camps.
Besides the vaccination drive, health authorities are publishing infographics to educate people on how to identify and prevent measles. Measles is a highly contagious airborne disease that can lead to severe complications and death. The WHO estimates that in 2024, approximately 95,000 people worldwide died from measles, most of them children under five years old. Measles can be prevented through vaccination, but the WHO emphasizes that 95% of the population must be vaccinated to stop the disease from spreading. Over the past two decades, global measles cases and deaths have fallen sharply, with 11 million cases worldwide in 2024—a significant decrease from 38 million in 2000. However, the organization has warned of a resurgence in parts of the world as vaccination rates decline. According to the medical journal The Lancet, 2024 and 2025 saw the highest number of measles outbreaks in over 20 years. Measles cases have risen in some countries in Asia and Africa, as well as in Europe, the US, and the UK, where skepticism toward vaccines has grown, especially after the pandemic.
Source: www.bbc.com