Global health agencies have warned that rising outbreaks of measles, meningitis, and other vaccine-preventable diseases are threatening decades of immunisation progress.
This warning comes from the World Health Organisation (WHO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, as they mark World Immunisation Week from 24 to 30 April.
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According to the agencies in a joint statement on Thursday, the progress made over decades in reducing child mortality is at risk due to funding cuts, misinformation, population growth, and ongoing humanitarian crises.
They are urging governments and donors to support global efforts to protect lives and sustain vaccination programmes.
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Deadly outbreaks rise
Diseases that were once under control are now resurging in many countries.
According to WHO, measles cases, for instance, have been increasing since 2021, with an estimated 10.3 million cases recorded in 2023, a 20 per cent increase from the previous year.
WHO noted that in the past 12 months alone, 138 countries reported measles outbreaks, and 61 of them faced large or disruptive outbreaks.
It added that in Africa, meningitis is surging, with over 5,500 suspected cases and nearly 300 deaths reported in just the first three months of 2025 across 22 countries.
Yellow fever is also re-emerging in Africa and the Americas, despite past success in controlling the disease through routine vaccination and emergency stockpiles.
“Yellow fever cases in the African region are also climbing, with 124 confirmed cases reported in 12 countries in 2024. This comes after dramatic declines in the disease over the past decade, thanks to global vaccine stockpiles and use of yellow fever vaccine in routine immunisation programmes.
“In the WHO Region of the Americas, yellow fever outbreaks have been confirmed since the beginning of this year, with a total of 131 cases in 4 countries,” WHO noted.
Impact of funding cuts
The increase in disease outbreaks is happening at a time when funding for global health is shrinking.
WHO highlighted its recent survey of 108 low- and lower-middle-income countries, which revealed that nearly half are facing disruptions to immunisation campaigns due to reduced donor funding.
More than half also report challenges in disease surveillance, limiting their ability to track and respond to outbreaks.
It highlighted that routine immunisation is struggling to bounce back from the setbacks of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2023, according to WHO, around 14.5 million children missed all routine vaccinations, up from 13.9 million in 2022. Over half of these children live in conflict-affected or unstable areas, where access to health care is limited.
UNICEF’s Executive Director, Catherine Russell, was quoted to have said that the global funding crisis is undermining efforts to vaccinate over 15 million vulnerable children in conflict zones.
Ms Russell said, “We cannot afford to lose ground in the fight against preventable diseases.”
In January, shortly after his inauguration, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order withdrawing the country from the WHO, citing political influence within the agency.
Mr Trump also paused all foreign aid assistance, which has affected most health programmes in developing countries, including Nigeria.
Immunisation still saves lives
Despite the challenges, immunisation remains one of the most effective health interventions.
WHO, UNICEF and Gavi say vaccines save around 4.2 million lives each year, with almost half of those saved in Africa.
“Joint efforts by WHO, UNICEF, Gavi and partners have helped countries expand access to vaccines and strengthen immunisation systems through primary health care, even in the face of mounting challenges,” they noted.
They revealed that a new vaccine that protects against five types of meningitis is now being introduced to widen protection.
In other areas, HPV vaccine coverage in Africa nearly doubled from 21 per cent in 2020 to 40 per cent in 2023.
They added that progress is also being made in the fight against malaria. Nearly 20 African countries have introduced malaria vaccines on a sub-national scale. This is expected to save up to 500,000 lives by 2035 as more countries expand their rollouts.
Call to action
The global health agencies are calling on parents, the public, and political leaders to step up support for vaccination.
They stress that immunisation offers long-term economic and health benefits, adding that every $1 invested in vaccines returns about $54 in economic value.
In his remarks, the CEO of Gavi, Sania Nishtar, noted that the outbreaks of highly infectious diseases concern the whole world, but “the good news is we can fight back.”
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Ms Nishtar spoke on Gavi’s next five-year strategy focuses on expanding global stockpiles and targeting countries hardest hit by diseases like meningitis, yellow fever, and measles.
However, she said this work depends on full funding.
“Gavi’s upcoming high-level pledging summit taking place on 25 June 2025 seeks to raise at least US$ 9 billion from our donors to fund our ambitious strategy to protect 500 million children, saving at least eight million lives from 2026–2030,” she noted.
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