Wake up to erosion of vaccination gains

The WHO, UNICEF and the Gavi Alliance sounded a warning last week about the possibility of the resurgence of measles, meningitis and yellow fever. The reasons cited are a reduction in funding, spread of misinformation, outbreak of humanitarian crises, and problems with health systems. The world is thus in danger of losing vaccination gains made over decades. 

Over 10 million measles cases were reported in 2023, marking a 20% rise from the previous year. The upward trend likely continued into 2024 and 2025, according to the agencies. Cases of meningitis and yellow fever have shown an increase even in regions once considered safe.

The Covid pandemic was also a reason for the fall in immunisation. In many countries, the coverage has not picked up to pre-Covid levels. Nearly 14.5 million children missed all routine vaccinations in 2023, and many of them are in conflict-ridden or unstable countries. Millions of children have been left vulnerable. 

A recent WHO survey showed that nearly half of all low and lower middle income countries are facing moderate to severe disruptions of vaccination and immunisation campaigns. They are finding it difficult to access supplies because of reduced donor funding.

The US administration’s decision to cut foreign aid will lead to cancellation of a grant of over a billion dollars to Gavi, a global public-private partnership to promote vaccination.

WHO has said that “vaccines have saved more than 150 million lives over the past five decades,” and that funding cuts have put the hard-won health gains in jeopardy. Outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases are increasing around the world, and countries with limited resources will be impacted more than others. Gavi’s vaccine programmes have immunised 1.1 billion children through routine programmes and are estimated to have prevented18.8 million deaths in recent years. 

The problem is not just one of funding cuts. Vaccine hesitancy and vaccine scepticism have increased. The health secretary in the Donald Trump administration, Robert F Kennedy, is an anti-vaccine activist. The rise of far right movements in many parts of the world has hit vaccination programmes.

There is increased hesitancy and resistance, due to campaigns against the alleged harmful effects of vaccination. Vaccination programmes are presented as grand conspiracies.

India has seen both progress and slippages. While it has reduced its number of “zero-dose” children — those who received no vaccines — from 2.73 million in 2021 to 1.6 million in 2023, it has seen a decline in measles vaccination. Public health can no longer be separated by national borders. The world needs co-ordinated action to reverse the present trend and promote vaccination programmes.