Dhaka: Bangladesh’s prime minister has ordered an urgent nationwide review following a measles outbreak with more than 600 cases, officials said Monday.
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has directed two senior ministers to travel across the South Asian nation of 170 million people to assess the scale of the crisis and coordinate response efforts, according to a statement from his Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
Ministry of Health senior official Md Halimur Rashid, head of the disease control unit, said there have been 674 measles cases across the country this year.
Measles is one of the world’s most contagious diseases, according to the World Health Organization, and spreads through coughs or sneezes.
Complications can include brain swelling and severe breathing problems. While it can affect anyone, it is most common in children.
Bangladesh has made significant advancements in vaccinations to tackle infectious disease, but a measles drive that had been due in June 2024 was delayed by unrest during a mass uprising that toppled the government.
“Regular vaccine drives have been ongoing, only the special campaign drive which was scheduled for June 2024 had to be postponed due to political unrest,” Rashid told AFP, saying the next campaign will begin in June.
The WHO estimates as many as 95,000 measles deaths globally every year, mostly among unvaccinated or under-vaccinated children under the age of five, according to its latest statistics.
There is no specific treatment for measles once caught.
