Bangladesh launches nationwide measles-rubella vaccine drive

Officials say the programme aims to vaccinate more than 17 million children aged between 6 months and 5 years

Bangladesh has launched a nationwide emergency vaccination drive to combat the recent outbreak of measles.

Health Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Husain inspected a temporary vaccination centre in Dhaka’s Shahjadpur on Monday as part of the measles-rubella vaccination programme.

Officials from the Expanded Program for Immunization (EPI) said the programme aims to vaccinate more than 17 million children aged between six months and five years. They also said that more than 1.1 million children across the country will be vaccinated on the first day of the programme.

Under the programme, the measles-rubella vaccine will be distributed from 8am at all permanent and temporary vaccination centres in the country, except for weekends.

Hasanul Mahmud, assistant director of the EPI, said that vaccination has begun in all areas, including in 30 Upazilas and four city corporations in 18 districts across the country. The vaccination programme, the first phase of which began on April 5, will continue until Apr 25. The phase of the programme that launched on Apr 12 will continue until May 12.

The nationwide emergency vaccination program for measles and rubella, which started on Monday, will continue until May 20 in city corporation areas and until May 12 in other places.

Also present at the Shahjadpur vaccination centre were Dhaka North City Corporation Administrator Md Shafiqul Islam Khan, US Ambassador to Bangladesh Brent T. Christensen, Special Envoy from the United States Charles Harder, and UNICEF Representative to Bangladesh Rana Flower.