Bangladesh expands vaccination drive as measles outbreak kills more than 1,000

Dhaka – The government has targeted bringing 3.5 million more children under the coverage of its anti-measles vaccination campaign after a measles outbreak left more than 1,000 children dead in the last six months.

More than 20 million children have been vaccinated under the government's nationwide measles-rubella vaccination programme since April, nearly half a month after the outbreak began in mid-March.

State Minister for Health M A Muhit disclosed the government's plan for an extended vaccination drive to bring more children under its coverage within a month, at an event in Dhaka on Wednesday.

The state minister said that the government was viewing the continuation of various vaccination programmes with importance.

He praised the role of the US government, Gavi, UNICEF, Dhaka North City Corporation, and health workers and field-level workers at various levels of the country for their cooperation in the vaccination activities.

Mentioning various initiatives taken by the government to prevent measles, Muhit said that the progress of the fight the government began just 15 days after taking responsibility is already visible.

Through the combined efforts of the Ministry of Health, local government, city corporations, and health workers, it has been possible to bring 20 million children across the country under the vaccination programme.

He said that even after vaccinating two crore children, the government has not stopped there.

"Every child's life is valuable. It is the government's goal that not a single child is left out of the vaccination programme. That is why this programme has been taken up as a 'mop-up campaign."

He said that under the programme, initiatives have been taken to identify and vaccinate children in remote and hard-to-reach areas, children with disabilities, and children who were left out of the previous phase of the vaccination programme for any reason.

The goal of this programme is to reach every child and ensure their safety and life, he said, adding that 3.5 million children will be brought under the current campaign.