Global vaccination drive delivers over 100 million doses to children

Global vaccination drive delivers over 100 million doses to children
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A major international immunisation campaign launched to recover pandemic-related setbacks has delivered more than 100 million vaccine doses to about 18.3 million children across 36 countries, according to Gavi, the WHO, and UNICEF.

The “Big Catch-Up” initiative, which concluded in March 2026, focused on children aged 1 to 5 who missed routine vaccinations. Of those reached, about 12.3 million were “zero-dose” children who had never received any vaccines.

The programme also administered 23 million doses of polio vaccine and helped expand access to measles and other routine immunisations in countries across Africa and Asia, where vaccination gaps had widened during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Health agencies said the initiative is expected to meet its target of reaching 21 million un- and under-immunised children, though final data is still being confirmed. They also warned that millions of children continue to miss routine vaccines each year, stressing the need for stronger long-term immunisation systems.