LONDON: Microsoft co-founder and global health philanthropist Bill Gates has said the complete eradication of measles is no longer possible for now, blaming growing vaccine hesitancy in wealthy countries for pushing the goal out of reach while the disease continues to kill around 100,000 children every year.
In an interview with Reuters, Gates said the world’s goal of wiping out measles had been left unfinished because of rising reluctance to vaccinate in rich nations.
Gates said that at one time, eliminating measles worldwide was among the possible targets of his foundation. However, growing doubts and suspicion about vaccines in wealthy countries have, for the time being, removed that goal from the list.
He described the situation as unfortunate, saying doubts and hesitancy over vaccines have made the goal of ending measles difficult to achieve.
According to Gates, before a vaccine became available in the 1960s, about two million children died of measles every year. Vaccination brought a dramatic improvement.
Even so, around 100,000 children still die of the disease worldwide each year. A large share of them live in countries where immunisation rates are low because of war, weak health systems or difficulties in delivering vaccines.
According to the World Health Organization, at least 95 percent of a population must be vaccinated to stop measles from spreading.
Gates warned that there is a real risk that scepticism about vaccines in countries such as the United States could spread globally. However, he said that in the low-income countries where his foundation works, no significant rise in vaccine hesitancy has so far been seen.
Gates urged governments to restore global aid, or at least to avoid cutting it further, noting that health systems and vaccination programmes in developing countries are already facing multiple challenges.
His appeal comes after several donor governments reduced international development spending, putting pressure on programmes that fund vaccine purchases, cold-chain logistics and health workers in poorer nations.
Measles is one of the most contagious infectious diseases in the world. Its common symptoms include high fever, cough and a prominent red rash across the body. Because it spreads so easily, even small gaps in immunisation coverage can allow outbreaks to return in communities that had been free of the disease.
For countries such as Pakistan, the message is a reminder of the importance of routine immunisation. Pakistan has invested heavily in national vaccination campaigns through its Expanded Programme on Immunization, including large-scale measles-rubella drives, and its experience in reaching children in difficult areas has been built through years of polio eradication work by frontline health workers.
Measles outbreaks in any country also carry cross-border risks, since the virus travels easily with people. Sustaining high coverage, particularly in remote and underserved districts, and countering misinformation about vaccines remain key to protecting children from preventable deaths.
Gates’s remarks underline a broader shift in global health: the obstacles to ending some diseases are no longer only scientific or financial, but increasingly social, rooted in public trust.
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