Sumenep, Indonesia — August 25 (AP) — Hundreds of children in Indonesia queued for free measles vaccinations on Monday as officials launched a campaign to tackle an outbreak that has claimed 17 lives.
More than 2,000 children have contracted the disease in East Java province over the last eight months. Authorities reported that 16 of the 17 fatalities were in the Sumenep district, with data showing that 16 of those patients were not vaccinated and one had not completed the vaccine series.
Indonesia has faced several measles outbreaks in the past, often attributed to insufficient vaccination coverage in the predominantly Muslim nation.
In 2018, a significant outbreak erupted in Papua, the easternmost province, resulting in numerous deaths. At the time, Indonesia's Ulema Council stated that the measles and rubella vaccine used for mass immunization contained pork, although the vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India was allowed until a pork-free, halal vaccine could be developed.
Last year, only 72 percent of Indonesia's 22 million children under the age of 5 received the measles vaccine, with some provinces reporting vaccination rates below 50 percent, according to Statistics Indonesia.
Authorities are urging residents, along with community and religious leaders, to back immunization efforts. The current mass vaccination drive in Sumenep aims to reach 78,000 children between the ages of 9 months and 6 years.
"Otherwise, this disease, measles, will spread further among our children. It will be even more fatal in the future," warned Imam Hasyim, the deputy chief of Sumenep district.
Globally, the World Health Organization reported that 84 percent of children received their first measles vaccine dose last year, while 76 percent completed both doses. Experts maintain that a 95 percent vaccination rate is necessary to prevent outbreaks. (AP) SKS ZH
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