Vaccination drive in Kenya in July this year.
Measles vaccines have driven a dramatic global decline in cases and deaths over the past two decades, according to a new World Health Organization report released this week.
Since 2000, global measles cases have dropped by 71 per cent, from an estimated 38 million to 11 million in 2024. Deaths have fallen even faster, plunging by 88 per cent from 777,000 to 95,000 over the same period.
Kenya has also made progress, but it still struggles to reach every child with two doses of the measles vaccine. National figures show that coverage for the first measles dose is improving, and routine Ministry of Health data indicate that measles vaccination among 12- to 23-month-olds reached about 90 per cent in 2022. Yet the second dose, which is essential for full protection, remains inconsistent across counties, leaving gaps that fuel outbreaks.
This vulnerability was underscored by Kenya’s emergency nationwide campaign in July this year, which vaccinated 5.18 million children against measles-rubella. The campaign reached 81 per cent of its target and identified more than 74,000 ‘zero-dose’ children who had never received a single vaccine.
But the urgency of the campaign reflects Kenya’s recent measles burden. Between January 2024 and February 2025, the country recorded nearly 3,000 measles cases and 18 deaths.
The WHO report calls measles vaccination one of the most successful public health interventions in history.
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, said it has been at the forefront of these efforts since 2007, supporting lower-income countries around the world to deliver vaccines through routine immunisation and preventive campaigns, as well as respond to outbreaks.
“Over 25 years, Gavi’s partnerships with lower-income countries have saved millions of lives and prevented outbreaks. Over this time, Gavi has been proud to partner with lower-income countries in their efforts to reach the most vulnerable children – showing remarkable resilience, improving vaccination coverage and responding swiftly to emergencies,” said Rebecca Casey, head of the measles and rubella vaccine programme at Gavi.
Gavi said since 2007, it has invested US$2.2 billion to support measles and rubella immunisation efforts (including US$1.1 billion in the last five years alone) through routine immunisation and preventive campaigns across 57 lower-income countries, reaching over 1.3 billion children.
The organisation said in a statement that in 2024 alone, it backed one of its largest pushes against measles, supporting 24 countries to roll out catch-up and follow-up campaigns reaching more than 62 million children.
Still, global coverage has not returned to pre-pandemic levels. WHO says the first dose of measles-containing vaccine reached 84 per cent of the world’s children in 2024. That is higher than 2000, when global coverage stood at 71 per cent, but still below the 86 per cent reached before the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted health systems worldwide.
Because measles spreads so easily, countries must reach at least 95 per cent coverage with two doses to stop transmission. Most remain far from that target.
Across Africa, routine immunisation has steadily improved. The continent increased first-dose coverage from 50 per cent in 2000 to 71 per cent in 2024. Coverage of the second dose also rose sharply, from 5 per cent in 2000 to 55 per cent in 2024. The region recorded a 40 per cent reduction in measles cases and a 50 per cent decline in deaths compared to 2019, WHO said.
Gavi’s Casey warned that the world cannot afford to slow down. “The rise in measles cases and outbreaks in regions around the world is a clear warning sign that we must not be complacent in our efforts to reach and maintain the high coverage rates needed to prevent outbreaks and deaths. Every child deserves protection from measles, and it is often the most vulnerable who are at greatest risk.”
