More than 14 million children are estimated to not receive a single vaccine in 2024: United Nations-Country
More than 14 million children did not receive a single vaccine last year, about the same as the previous year, health officials said. Nine countries account for more than half of unprotected children.
In an annual estimate of global vaccine coverage released on Tuesday, the World Health Organization and UNICEF said that children around 89, about 1-year-olds under the age of 89 received their first dose of diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough vaccine in 2024, the same as in 2023 and the same as in 2023. About 84% of the series, up to 84%.
But officials acknowledge that the collapse of international aid this year will make it more difficult to reduce the number of unprotected children. In January, U.S. President Trump withdrew the country from the WHO, freezing almost all humanitarian aid, and later moved to the U.S. aid agency. Last month, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Kennedy is a long-time vaccine skeptic who has previously raised questions about the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccines, which have proven safe and effective after years of research and real-life use. According to UN estimates, vaccines can predict 3.5 million to 5 million deaths per year.
“The dramatic cuts in aid, coupled with misinformation of vaccine safety, threaten to relax decades of progress,” said his director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
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UN experts say access to vaccinations remains “very unequal” and that conflict and humanitarian crises have quickly revealed progress. Sudan has the lowest coverage of diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough. Data show that nine countries account for 52% of all children who missed immunization completely: Nigeria, India, Sudan, Congo, Congo, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Yemen, Afghanistan and Angola.
Who and UNICEF said coverage for measles has risen slightly, with 76% of children worldwide receiving two vaccine doses. But experts say the measles vaccine rate needs to reach 95% to prevent the outbreak of this infectious disease. He noted that 60 countries reported measles outbreaks last year.
According to the WHO, the United States is currently in a measles outbreak for more than three decades, and disease in Europe has surged, with 125,000 cases in 2024 doubled the previous year.
Last week, British authorities reported that a child died at a Liverpool hospital. Health officials say that despite years of efforts to raise awareness, only about 84% of children in the UK are protected.
“It is worrying that we are continuing to see measles outbreaks,” said Helen Bradford, professor of child health at University College London. “The only way to stop measles transmission is through vaccination,” she said in a statement. “Even in adults, it’s never too late to get the vaccine.”
& Copy 2025 Canadian Press
