One in ten children still not vaccinated in the world, according to the WHO

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AFP

Monday, 17 July 2017 11:33

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Monday, 17 July 2017 11:33

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One in ten children in the world has not received any vaccine by 2016 and is likely to catch diphtheria, tetanus or pertussis, warned Monday the world Health Organization (WHO).

The study, conducted jointly with Unicef (united Nations Fund for children), reveals that 12.9 million children out of a total of 116.5 million were not vaccinated, and in addition, approximately 6.6 million children received only a single dose of vaccine on the three needed to be protected.

Since 2010, the vaccination rate among children stands at 86%, still far from the target of 90% set by the UN.

“Most of the children who are not immunized are the same, which are outside the health systems,” noted Dr Jean-Marie Okwo-Bele, director of immunization and vaccines at the WHO. “These children are very likely to have received no basic health services. If we want to increase the rate of overall coverage of immunisation, health services must reach those who are not”, he added.

The vaccination can now prevent between 2 and 3 million deaths each year from diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and measles, are reminiscent of the WHO and Unicef.

According to the latest statistics, 130 out of 194 WHO member States last year reached a coverage rate of at least 90% for the diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough. But eight countries have a vaccination rate below 50%: central african Republic, Chad, equatorial Guinea, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria and Ukraine.

Recalling that more than half of the world’s population lives in urban areas, particularly in the shanty towns of Africa and Asia, the report points out that “the urban poor” represent the group most exposed to the under-immunization or non-immunization.