MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Children's vaccination stagnating worldwide

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2024, around 20 million children worldwide were unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated

A new study supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, recently published in The Lancet, showed childhood vaccination coverage stagnated worldwide and even declined since 2010, which was made worse by the Covid-19 pandemic. The research, which analyzed data from 204 countries between 1980 and 2023, found that while there was sustained growth in vaccination rates during the 1980s and 1990s for diseases like diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, measles, and polio, this progress has now stalled.

The investigation highlights a growing population of “zero-dose children”—those who have not received even a single vaccine. In 2024, this number reached 14.3 million, with these individuals primarily living in areas of armed conflict, extreme poverty, and with weak health systems, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of South and Southeast Asia.

The authors stressed the urgent need for strengthened health systems, targeted strategies to reach these vulnerable populations, and international financial support to reverse the trend and meet global health goals for 2030. “Investing in immunization is not just a health issue, but a commitment to equity and sustainable development,” they noted.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2024, around 20 million children worldwide were unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated. “The persistence of high rates of zero-dose children poses a threat to global public health, exacerbating vulnerabilities in already marginalized populations,” the study notes.

In addition to traditional vaccines, the study includes data on new vaccines introduced in many countries, such as pneumococcal conjugate and rotavirus. Although these vaccines have improved child protection, their coverage remains uneven, reflecting additional challenges in logistics and resources. Projections suggest that without enhanced intervention, vaccine coverage will not only continue to stagnate but could worsen.