A two-week vaccination campaign against the measles will begin in Kenya’s health ministry, targeting 1.2 million children between the ages of nine months and five.
90% of children under the age of five missed the two-dose immunisation due to an outbreak that affected seven counties during that time.
Due to people moving from one location to another in search of food and water, the protracted drought has made it challenging for medical professionals to provide this life-saving vaccine to youngsters.
The ministry has not made public the number of cases and fatalities it has received, but it has urged parents and guardians to make sure their kids receive vaccinations in order to stop the outbreak.
The highly contagious illness known as the measles is characterised by a high temperature and a rash. Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, vaccination coverage has been steadily declining on a global scale. Beginning on Friday and running through December 18, the campaign.
Measles is a highly contagious, serious disease caused by a virus. In 1980, before widespread vaccination, measles caused an estimated 2.6 million deaths each year.
The disease remains one of the leading causes of death among young children globally, despite the availability of a safe and effective vaccine. Approximately 134 200 people died from measles in 2015 – mostly children under the age of 5.
Measles is caused by a virus in the paramyxovirus family and it is normally passed through direct contact and through the air. The virus infects the respiratory tract , then spreads throughout the body. Measles is a human disease and is not known to occur in animals.
Accelerated immunisation activities have had a major impact on reducing measles deaths. During 2000-2015, measles vaccination prevented an estimated 20.3 million deaths. Global measles deaths have decreased by 79% from an estimated 651,600 in 2000 to 134,200 in 2015.