Kenya’s health ministry will launch a two-week vaccination campaign against measles targeting 1.2 million children aged between nine months and five years.
It follows an outbreak in seven counties where 90% of children below five years have missed out on the two-dose vaccine.
The ongoing drought has made it difficult for health workers to give children this life-saving vaccine, due to the movement of people from one place to another in search of food and water.
The ministry has not disclosed how many cases and deaths have been reported, but is urging parents and guardians to ensure their children get vaccinated to contain the outbreak.
Measles is a highly contagious disease characterised by a high fever and a rash. The vaccination coverage has steadily declined globally since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The campaign will begin on Friday and end on 18 December.
