Also, children aged 0 to 59 months will be issued vaccines as part of their selected routine vaccines they may have missed during their regular immunisation schedule.
At the launch of the initiative held at Faji Kunda Major Health Centre, Ramatoulai Camara, Officer-In-Charge of Faji Kunda Major Health Centre, reminded that it has now become a tradition for the Ministry alongside stakeholders to embark on such important initiative geared at making sure that all the kids in The Gambia, be it a Gambian or non-Gambian, are vaccinated against vaccine preventable diseases.
Musa Camara, Regional Health Director, West One, described the campaign as not more than just an event, saying it also demonstrates ministry’s renewed commitment to protecting the future of the country.
“Measles Rubella are highly contagious diseases that can cause serious health consequences, ranging from disability, economic loss and even death.”
He thus called on all parents and caregivers to ensure that every eligible child receives the MR vaccine during the campaign period.
Also speaking, Dr. Nathan Nsubuga Bakyaita, Country representative of the World Health Organisation, described the launch as a critical step towards protecting the health and future of ‘our children’.
The gathering, he added, is not just a mere campaign, but to renew their promise to protect every child despite where he or she lives.
The WHO Country rep also reminded that this kind of campaigns are not designed for a particular type of people from privileged or underprivileged backgrounds, group or class, acknowledging that disease outbreaks know no boundary.
“Measles and rubella are vaccine-preventable diseases. Yet they continue to pose a threat to children across the globe and have devastating consequences for pregnant women and their babies. Yet we have safe and effective vaccines.”
Dr. Nathan underscored the importance of this nationwide campaign, outlining that parents and caregivers should make available eligible children required for this vaccination to take the doses.
That, he said, would help record coverage of up to 95%, noting that there are a lot of children below 5.
“So, if we had an outbreak of measles, those children are susceptible and they could get infected and some of them can get the complication or even die. Beyond dying, I have seen children who got measles and are blind for the rest of their lives. So, measles can also cause blindness.” he added.
He assured that the vaccines to be administered are safe and effective and that it will not harm children.
To that end, he thanked the Ministry and all stakeholders who have contributed to the success of the launch, pointing out that the success of the campaign will not be measured only by coverage rates, but by trust in how well they reach most of the children they target.
In his launch statement on behalf of the Minister of Health, Dr. Momodou T. Nyassi, director of Health Services at the Ministry, emphasised that the event marks another important milestone in ‘our collective’ effort to safeguard the health of children; the future of this nation.
The government of The Gambia, he noted, remains committed to ensuring that every child enjoys the right to a healthy standard of life.
“Immunization is one of the most effective and efficient public health interventions that protect children from deadly yet preventable disease. Measles and Rubella continue to pose a major public health concern in many parts of the world including The Gambia. Although significant progress has been made in reducing cases over the years, the threat remains particularly when there are immunity gaps in the population.”
To this end, Dr. Nyassi made reference to the two episodes of measles outbreak registered in the country in 2025, the first in April and the second in July, both in the Western 1 Health Region.
According to him, a total of nine confirmed positive cases were recorded, though no deaths were reported.
He, however, revealed that the recent risk assessment clearly signals immunity gaps, pointing out that that could put thousands of children at risk of infection.
Other speakers included Sidat Fofana, programme mamanger at the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) at the Ministry, thanked their sponsors, further encouraging all to make best use of the opportunity by helping vaccination team, who will be visiting village squares, ‘bantabas’ and schools.
