Bangladesh Measles Outbreak Worsens Amid Vaccine Procurement Concerns

A report by Bangladesh-based *The Daily Star* attributed the worsening situation in part to the interim government's decision in September 2025 to stop procuring measles-rubella vaccines through UNICEF and shift to an open tender process. The tender process was subsequently delayed, the report said.

The decision was reportedly taken despite warnings that disrupting the established procurement system could affect routine immunisation and increase the risk of a measles outbreak. Bangladesh had relied on UNICEF for an extended period to procure measles-rubella vaccines, with financing largely supported by Gavi along with contributions from the government, according to the report, which cited a report published by *Science*.

The outbreak was first reported in January in Rohingya refugee camps near the Myanmar border and has since spread to 58 of Bangladesh's 64 districts. More than 21,000 people have reportedly been hospitalised.

Government data indicated that only 59 per cent of eligible children received measles vaccines in 2025 before the figures were subsequently removed from official government websites, the report said. The tendering process was also affected by bureaucratic delays, contributing to shortages and disruptions in routine vaccination.

ASM Alamgir, a former principal scientist at Bangladesh's Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR), also pointed to failures in vitamin A distribution campaigns since 2024, saying the gaps may have further weakened children's immunity.

Bangladesh resumed vaccine procurement through UNICEF in April and subsequently launched an emergency vaccination campaign. However, former Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) disease control director Be-nazir Ahmed said the outbreak was unlikely to be brought under control quickly given the rate at which the infection was spreading.

The controversy over vaccine procurement has also reached the country's anti-corruption authorities. Supreme Court lawyer Biplob Kumar Das has filed a complaint with the Anti-Corruption Commission alleging corruption and failures in vaccine procurement during the interim government's tenure, according to the report.

Bangladesh's 2023 Coverage Evaluation Survey showed that first-dose measles-rubella vaccination coverage had declined to 86 per cent in 2023 from 88.6 per cent in 2019. Second-dose coverage also fell to 80.7 per cent from 89 per cent during the same period.

Health experts generally estimate that measles transmission needs vaccination coverage of around 95 per cent to be interrupted, highlighting the vulnerability created by declining immunisation levels.