Global childhood immunisation improves slightly, but conflict and vaccine hesitancy leave millions unprotected — WHO-UNICEF
WoHO File
By Correspondent
The Global childhood immunisation coverage recorded modest gains in 2025, but millions of children remain unprotected due to conflict, displacement, poverty and growing vaccine hesitancy, according to new estimates released by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF.
The annual WHO-UNICEF Estimates of National Immunization Coverage (WUENIC) show that 90% of infants worldwide—about 116 million children—received at least one dose of the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP) vaccine in 2025. Meanwhile, 85% (110 million children) completed the recommended three-dose series.
Although both indicators improved by one percentage point from 2024, global vaccination coverage remains below pre-pandemic levels recorded in 2019 and has largely stagnated over the past 15 years.
The report estimates that 13.5 million children received no vaccines at all during their first year of life in 2025. While this represents a decline of nearly 750,000 compared with the previous year, health agencies warned that increasing numbers of children are starting vaccination schedules but failing to complete them.
About 7.3 million infants received their first DTP dose but did not go on to receive their first measles vaccine, contributing to stalled measles immunisation rates. Global coverage for the first measles dose remained at 84%, while only 77% of children received the second dose—well below the 95% threshold needed to prevent outbreaks.
As a result, 57 countries reported major or disruptive measles outbreaks in 2025. UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said global vaccination programmes have recovered from the setbacks caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, but warned that millions of vulnerable children continue to be left behind.
“We must reach every child, and we must rebuild trust where it is fraying. No child should suffer from a disease that a simple vaccine can prevent,” she said.
The report highlights significant disparities between countries. More than half of all “zero-dose” children live in fragile, conflict-affected or vulnerable settings, where immunisation programmes are often disrupted by insecurity, political instability and underfunding.
Syria experienced sharp declines in vaccine coverage during the year, while Sudan recorded one of the world’s biggest improvements, demonstrating that immunisation can recover even in conflict situations when access to health services improves.
Meanwhile, several middle- and high-income countries also recorded declining vaccination rates, driven by weakening political commitment, structural challenges and rising vaccine hesitancy. South Africa’s DTP coverage has fallen significantly since 2019, while Bosnia and Herzegovina saw a sharp drop in measles vaccination coverage over the past year.
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described immunisation as one of the most cost-effective and equitable public health interventions, stressing that every child deserves protection against preventable diseases regardless of where they are born.
Despite a 40% reduction in the number of zero-dose children over the past 25 years, WHO and UNICEF warned that recent cuts to international health financing threaten future progress. They also expressed concern over weakening data systems, noting that only 18 national immunisation surveys were conducted and submitted in the latest reporting cycle, down from 50 in 2024.
The agencies urged governments and development partners to strengthen immunisation services in conflict-affected areas, combat misinformation about vaccines, increase domestic and international funding, and invest in stronger disease surveillance and health data systems to prevent future outbreaks.
