Dhaka, May 22: The measles outbreak in Bangladesh continues to escalate. As of Thursday morning, seven more children have died due to symptoms resembling measles, bringing the total number of fatalities since March 15 to 488.
According to local media reports, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) indicated that four of the recent deaths are suspected to be measles-related, while laboratory tests confirmed three cases. The majority of these recent fatalities have been reported from Chittagong.
Since March 15, the country has recorded 405 suspected and 83 confirmed measles deaths. During this period, there have been 1,423 new suspected cases, raising the total number of suspected infections to 59,279.
Additionally, with 208 new confirmed cases, the total number of confirmed infections has reached 8,275. The report states that since March 15, 46,407 suspected patients have been hospitalized, while 42,336 patients have recovered and returned home.
Meanwhile, UNICEF has claimed that it warned the previous interim government, led by Mohammad Yunus, multiple times about the vaccine shortage. In a press conference held in Dhaka, Rana Flowers, UNICEF’s representative in Bangladesh, stated that the agency sent five to six letters to the health ministry and expressed concerns in ten meetings during the interim government’s tenure.
She noted, “Since 2024, we have been warning the government that the vaccine shortage could lead to a major health crisis. We sent several letters and highlighted this issue in various meetings, but no vaccine orders were placed.”
According to Flowers, UNICEF’s Deputy Executive Director Ted Chaiban also raised concerns about the vaccine crisis during a meeting with the Foreign Ministry during his visit to Bangladesh last August.
She added that UNICEF will provide evidence and support for the investigation initiated by the current BNP-supported government regarding the measles outbreak.
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