Bangladesh faces serious measles outbreak as vaccination issues come to light

A measles outbreak in Bangladesh has claimed 1,147 lives and infected over 202,000 people since March 2026. An investigation by Reuters links this crisis to falling vaccination rates, poor health data, and challenges in reaching children.

The Reuters investigation, published on Saturday, found that Bangladesh's routine measles vaccination program struggled in 2025. The first-dose coverage dropped to 90 percent, while the second-dose coverage fell to 86 percent.

These figures fall below the 95 percent coverage rate that the World Health Organisation (WHO) says is necessary to stop measles outbreaks. The investigation included a review of WHO documents and interviews with many scientists, health workers, and officials. Reuters also looked at previously unreported documents from meetings involving the Bangladeshi government, WHO, and other health partners.

"Until recently, Bangladesh had been a vaccination success story," Reuters noted. WHO and UNICEF estimated that in 2024, the country achieved 96 percent coverage for the first measles vaccine dose and 93 percent for the second dose.

But political unrest after the 2024 protests affected health services. "But that same year, protests erupted that ended 15 years of rule by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. In the ensuing political turmoil, health workers went on strike, vaccine orders were delayed, and follow-up vaccinations that usually accompany routine programs were disrupted," it stated.

Emergency vaccination campaign

As the outbreak intensified, Bangladesh launched an emergency vaccination campaign that reached nearly 20 million children in April and May. The government claimed this campaign covered every child aged six months to five years.

However, Reuters found evidence suggesting millions of children might have been overlooked. A separate routine health intervention held in June targeted four million more children than the measles emergency campaign, although both focused on the same age group.

This difference raised doubts about how effective the emergency campaign was and the data used to identify children needing vaccinations. By August, documents reviewed by Reuters indicated that gaps were still present. Meeting notes showed that the rate of children with confirmed measles who had not been vaccinated remained almost the same after the emergency campaign.

At the end of September, the government started another campaign aimed at 3.4 million children it said had been missed. Mark Jit, a WHO vaccine adviser, described Bangladesh’s situation as "a real warning to every country," adding that preventing outbreaks through vaccination is easier, cheaper, and safer than reacting after the disease spreads.