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3w ago

Global Childhood Vaccination Stalls as 16 Million Children Remain Unprotected

Rampant vaccine misinformation, COVID-19 disruptions, funding cuts erase decades of immunisation progress

FILE - A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child in Karachi, Pakistan, Jan. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan, File)
Between 2010 and 2019, there were declines in at least one kind of vaccination in 21 of 36 high-income countries measured in a new study.
More than half of the world's completely unvaccinated children live in just eight countries, research finds
Polio vaccination (representational image) | Commons

Overview

  • A Lancet study finds coverage for 11 core childhood vaccines has stalled or reversed since 2010, leaving nearly 16 million children worldwide without a single shot.
  • More than half of zero-dose children reside in eight countries—Nigeria, India, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, Indonesia and Brazil—underscoring persistent inequalities in access.
  • Disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic drove the number of zero-dose children to a peak of 18.6 million in 2021 before modestly improving to 15.7 million in 2023, yet rates remain well below global targets.
  • Measles cases surged globally, with European infections climbing from 3,973 in 2023 to 32,265 in 2024 and the US recording over 1,000 cases and two deaths in early 2025.
  • Funding shortfalls threaten WHO’s 2030 immunisation goals as Gavi seeks $9 billion at its upcoming summit, and the Gates Foundation’s $1.6 billion pledge falls short of filling gaps left by reduced donor commitments.