Bangladesh is facing one of the worst measles outbreaks in its modern history, with more than 55,000 reported infections and at least 424 deaths since mid-March, exposing what health experts describe as a major failure of the country’s interim administration in maintaining routine immunisation and vaccine procurement systems.
The crisis, detailed in a report published by telegraph.co.uk�, has overwhelmed hospitals across the country, particularly in Dhaka and Noakhali, where wards are overcrowded with critically ill children suffering from pneumonia, malnutrition and neurological complications linked to measles.
Doctors say the outbreak escalated rapidly after Bangladesh missed its scheduled nationwide measles vaccination campaign during the political transition that followed the fall of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in 2024.
Health specialists and international observers have criticised the interim government for failing to secure adequate vaccine supplies and for reacting too slowly despite rising measles outbreaks in several countries during 2024 and 2025.
According to the report, vaccine stockpiles became depleted as procurement processes slowed and tens of thousands of healthcare positions remained vacant during the transitional administration. The disruption created a dangerous immunisation gap in a country previously praised by the World Health Organization for maintaining high vaccination coverage.
Medical experts warn that measles spreads extremely quickly when immunisation rates fall below the 95 percent threshold required for herd immunity.
At the DNCC Hospital in Dhaka, which was previously used during the Covid-19 pandemic, military-managed measles wards are now treating thousands of infected children. Doctors describe scenes of exhaustion, overcrowding and rising fatalities.
Paediatric consultant Dr. Faria Yasmin said many infected infants should normally have been protected either through vaccination or maternal antibodies, but both systems failed simultaneously due to disrupted immunisation coverage and widespread malnutrition.
The outbreak has also exposed deep inequality within Bangladesh’s healthcare system. While wealthier patients can access private intensive care facilities, low-income families are struggling to afford life-saving treatment for their children.
Many parents interviewed said their children missed scheduled measles vaccines because local clinics either lacked doses or vaccination campaigns were postponed.
Public health analysts say the interim administration failed to anticipate the consequences of delaying mass immunisation programmes despite warnings from global health agencies about declining vaccine coverage after the Covid-19 pandemicThe emergency response now underway, supported by UNICEF,
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and the WHO, aims to vaccinate millions of children nationwide. However, doctors warn the campaign may have come too late for many vulnerable infants already suffering severe complications.
The outbreak has renewed debate over the capacity of Bangladesh’s interim leadership to manage essential public health infrastructure during political instability, with critics arguing that administrative indecision and procurement failures turned a preventable disease into a national tragedy.
