On 25 January 2026, an urgent measles and rubella vaccination campaign was launched in El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur State, by our teams working at El Geneina Teaching Hospital, in coordination with the Ministry of Health and other health partners.

The six-day campaign aimed to vaccinate children aged 9 months to 15 years to curb the spread of measles, a highly contagious disease that can be deadly without timely prevention.

In recent months, measles cases in El Geneina have surged sharply. Admissions at El Geneina Teaching Hospital have doubled, with an average of around 130 cases per week recorded. According to the State Ministry of Health, approximately 3,098 measles cases have been reported in West Darfur since last year, with the highest concentration in El Geneina, where our team operates a dedicated measles isolation unit.

By the end of the campaign on 30 January, more than 174,000 children had been vaccinated out of a target of 186,000.

Community engagement was central to achieving the campaign’s target. Around 1,400 Community volunteers were trained, mobilized, and deployed across 237 vaccination sites. They had been raising awareness among families and guiding them to vaccination sites.

In addition, our teams conducted a catch-up campaign to accelerate routine immunization for children under five, while also using the window to carry out mass screening for children attending vaccination sites.

This is not the first time MSF has supported the State Ministry of Health in responding to measles in West Darfur. A similar vaccination campaign was conducted last year in Foro Baranga locality, in the south of this state.