Measles is one of the most contagious disease in the world - and often referred to as the most contagious one. A person carrying the virus can infect up to 90 per cent of the unvaccinated people around him or her. A vaccine offers almost complete protection when a person is inoculated twice and, therefore, ensuring maximum double-vaccination coverage of children is vital. To avoid outbreaks, 95% of the children should be double-vaccinated; surveillance must be strong ; and regular catch-up campaigns must be organized to protect children who fall through the cracks. The fight against measles is like a chain around the virus: if one link is broken, the virus can escape.

Unfortunately, this protection chain is weak in many low-income countries and, every year, measles is responsible for the death of tens – and sometimes hundreds of thousands of children worldwide. The Democratic Republic of Congo is a good example: every two to three years, measles outbreaks affect tens or even hundreds of thousands of Congolese children. According to recent UN estimates, only 55 per cent of children were covered by one dose of measles vaccine in 2021.

Measles has been the primary reason for intervention by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) emergency teams in DRC for years. In 2022, we carried out 45 measles-related emergency interventions; that’s more than three-quarters of our emergency response in DRC. That year, MSF teams in DRC vaccinated more than 2 million children in 14 provinces and treated over 37,000 children with measles. In addition to organizing reactive vaccination campaigns during outbreaks in an area, MSF also provides logistical support for routine vaccination activities in health facilities in several provinces where its teams are present throughout the year.