Interim govt changed vaccine procurement despite Unicef warning: Science report
Bangladesh is battling a fast‑spreading measles epidemic, with over 32,000 suspected infections and more than 250 deaths -- mostly children -- reported since mid‑March.
It has led to chaotic scenes in hospitals across the country. Earlier this month, Dhaka’s Infectious Disease Hospital was filled with children, some struggling to breathe and others lying still. Because of a shortage of beds, some were treated on the floor, reports Science.org, a scientific research, technology and medical news site of the peer-reviewed journal Science.
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Measles, once seen as close to eradication, is making a comeback. Canada and several European countries lost their “measles‑free” status, while the US alone reported more than 1,700 cases this year, compared to about 100 in the early 2000s. Outbreaks continue to plague the Middle East and Africa as well.
Growing vaccine hesitancy, disruptions in immunisation during the Covid-19 pandemic, and wars have all contributed to the resurgence, according to the Science report published yesterday.
In Bangladesh, the epidemic stems from a breakdown in vaccine procurement following the 2024 revolution which led to the fall of Sheikh Hasina-led government. The results were nationwide vaccine shortages and declining immunisation rates. As the disease spread, high child malnutrition and a weak health system increased the death toll. Experts note that the situation shows how quickly progress in public health can erode.
Bangladesh gives children two doses of the measles‑rubella (MR) vaccine at 9 and 15 months, with nationwide campaigns every four years to reach 95% coverage. Unicef supplied the vaccines, funded mainly by Gavi, with contributions from the government.
In September 2025, the interim government led by Prof Muhammad Yunus halted vaccine procurement through Unicef and shifted to an open tender system.
Unicef strongly opposed the change, warning it could disrupt the immunisation system and trigger an outbreak. “It was very frustrating,” Unicef Representative to Bangladesh Rana Flowers told Science.
“For God’s sake … don’t do this,” she told interim government’s health adviser Nurjahan Begum, who did not respond to questions from Science.
The tender process was mired in bureaucratic delays, causing vaccine supplies to run out and routine immunisation to stall. A supplemental MR campaign, postponed from 2024 to 2025 due to unrest, was cancelled. By late March, government data showed only 59% of eligible children received measles vaccinations in 2025. The figures were later removed from the website, according to Science.
The outbreak began in January in Rohingya refugee camps near the Myanmar border and quickly spread nationwide. It has reached 58 of Bangladesh’s 64 districts, causing more than 21,000 hospitalisations. In an April 23 update, the World Health Organization warned of a considerable risk of spread to Myanmar, where civil strife has disrupted immunisation, and to India. WHO described the outbreak as a reversal of Bangladesh’s earlier progress toward measles elimination.
Malnutrition is worsening measles outcomes in Bangladesh, with 28% of children under five stunted. Vitamin A deficiency further weakens immunity, and three biannual distribution campaigns have been missed since 2024, said ASM Alamgir, former principal scientist at the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR). Underfunded clinics and hospitals are overwhelmed. “Beyond immunisation gaps, Bangladesh’s measles crisis reflects deep structural weaknesses,” said Mohammad Mushtuq Husain, adviser at IEDCR.
Bangladesh’s new government reinstated vaccine procurement through Unicef in April and worked with WHO and Gavi to secure supplies, said Ziauddin Hyder, special assistant on health affairs to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.
On April 5, authorities began an emergency vaccination drive for children aged 6 months to 5 years in high‑risk areas, followed by a nationwide rollout on April 20. Vitamin A distribution is also set to resume, Hyder added.
Given the speed at which measles is currently spreading, however, the emergency campaign is unlikely to stop the epidemic quickly, warned Be-nazir Ahmed, former director of disease control at the Directorate General of Health Services.
PM Tarique blamed both the Hasina and interim governments. When contacted, in an email response to Science, Sheikh Hasina -- sentenced to death in absentia and now in exile in India -- said her government prioritised vaccination and noted that no major measles outbreaks occurred during her 15 years in power.
Many scientists Science talked to point to the interim government, which has also come under legal scrutiny.
On April 12, Biplob Kumar Das, a Supreme Court lawyer, filed a complaint with the Anti-Corruption Commission, alleging corruption and vaccine-procurement failures under the interim government.
Prof Sayedur Rahman, former VC of Bangladesh Medical University and a key health adviser to the interim government, said the old procurement system was based on an emergency clause and needed revision.
In an email to Science, he wrote that the interim government wanted it “shifted to a regular, rule-based system going forward” to “avoid questions about transparency or lead to perceptions of bias.”
Sayedur did not answer follow‑up questions on what went wrong but acknowledged the human toll, writing: “The loss of children to a fully preventable disease like measles is heartbreaking. It is a human tragedy, and my deepest condolences go to every family that has suffered.”
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