5 letters to interim government on vaccination, warning in 10 meetings

During the interim government’s tenure, UNICEF had warned about the potential vaccine shortage in at least five letters written to the Ministry of Health. In addition, they had also warned government officials in 10 meetings. This information was given at a press conference titled ‘Measles Outbreak and Ongoing Situation Response Activities’ at the UNICEF Bangladesh office in the capital on Wednesday (May 20) afternoon. UNICEF Bangladesh Representative Rana Flowers spoke at the event.
According to the organization, between August and November last year, Bangladesh received 17.8 million doses of measles vaccine, which is only one-third of the country’s total demand. Bangladesh needs about 70 million doses of vaccine every year, but the lack of adequate supply has been hampering the regular vaccination program for a long time. Due to this long disruption in the regular vaccination program, many children do not receive the vaccine. Which increases the risk of measles infection in the country and ultimately causes a large-scale outbreak.
UNICEF said that this crisis was not due to lack of money or funds, but rather delays in the procurement process that prevented timely procurement of vaccines. However, UNICEF said that the situation is now starting to improve. In this regard, Rana Flowers said, the good news is that more than 18 million children have received the measles vaccine. Measles is under control.