Conflict zones around the world have severely hindered efforts to vaccinate children, leading to a crisis where approximately 14.5 million children have not received any immunization doses, according to a joint report by UNICEF and the WHO.
More than half of these children reside in countries grappling with armed conflicts or humanitarian crises, exacerbating fragile conditions. In Sudan, the number of unvaccinated children skyrocketed from 110,000 in 2021 to an estimated 701,000 last year, while Yemen saw its figures rise from 424,000 to 580,000 over three years.
In addition to the 14.5 million “zero-dose” children in 2023, another 6.5 million were classified as “under-vaccinated,” failing to receive all recommended doses. Officials underscored the urgency of the situation, noting that despite progress in some areas, the global goal to halve zero-dose children by 2030 remains off-track.
Dr. Katherine O’Brien, WHO’s director of immunization and vaccines, highlighted the dire consequences: “This places the lives of the most vulnerable children at grave risk,” she said, pointing out that children in humanitarian settings lack security, nutrition, and adequate healthcare, making them highly susceptible to vaccine-preventable diseases.
The report also revealed that global vaccine coverage has yet to rebound to pre-pandemic levels of 2019, with 12.8 million children classified as zero-dose that year, alongside 5.5 million who were under-vaccinated.
Countries with large birth cohorts or weak health systems, such as Nigeria, India, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Indonesia, account for over half of the world’s zero-dose children. Sudan, Yemen, and Afghanistan were newly added to this list in 2023 due to ongoing conflicts.
Douglas Hageman, UNICEF’s representative in Sudan, lamented the collapse of the country’s health system, citing a drastic drop in national vaccination coverage from 85% to around 50%, plummeting to as low as 8% in conflict-ridden areas like South Darfur.
Vaccination rates in Yemen are alarmingly low, emphasized Peter Hawkins, UNICEF’s representative in the country, attributing the crisis to a complex mix of factors including restricted healthcare access, vaccine hesitancy, and worsening socioeconomic and political conditions.
Dr. O’Brien cautioned that misinformation, which proliferated during the pandemic, continues to circulate in many countries, resulting in avoidable deaths.
While there has been progress in HPV vaccine coverage, crucial for cervical cancer prevention, the report highlighted the need for its introduction in 51 countries, including China and India, to address ongoing health disparities.
The UN’s latest findings underscore the critical need for international cooperation and support to strengthen healthcare systems in conflict zones, safeguarding the health and future of vulnerable children worldwide.