The WHO, UNICEF, and Gavi vaccine alliance reported a troubling rise in outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases like measles, meningitis, and yellow fever as World Immunization Week began. Vaccination rates have declined due to funding cuts, threatening the hard-won gains made in public health; measles cases alone skyrocketed to over 10 million in 2023, with projections for continued increases. UNICEF noted that over 15 million vulnerable children lack measles vaccinations. Furthermore, significant rises in meningitis and yellow fever cases in African countries have been recorded, underscoring the impact of missed routine vaccinations during the pandemic.
"Vaccines have saved more than 150 million lives over the past five decades. Funding cuts to global health have put these hard-won gains in jeopardy," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
"The global funding crisis is severely limiting our ability to vaccinate more than 15 million vulnerable children in fragile and conflict-affected countries against measles," added UNICEF chief Catherine Russell.
Measles is making a dangerous comeback, with cases rising by 20% within a year to reach 10.3 million in 2023, likely to continue in 2024 and 2025.
In the first three months of 2025, more than 5,500 cases of meningitis and about 300 deaths were reported in 22 African countries.
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