Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina – The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF
have called on Bosnian authorities to increase measles vaccination rates among children
after two adolescents died from the disease in a recent outbreak.
Bosnia has recorded over 7,000 estimated measles cases since December, making it the
country with the highest number of infections in the Balkans. The national immunization
rate for measles in Bosnia stands at 55%, compared to 90% in neighboring Croatia.
We are facing a breakdown in immunization coverage said Erwin Cooreman, WHO’s special
representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Measles can have devastating effects on
children’s health, and it’s preventable with two doses of a vaccine.
Marc Lucet, UNICEF’s representative in Bosnia, added, “In 2024, there is no justification for
children to be at risk of contracting this preventable disease. We urge health officials to
make stronger efforts to vaccinate children.
Two unvaccinated adolescents, aged 17 and 18, died from measles in separate incidents in
Sarajevo and Zenica. UNICEF and the European Union are supporting a childhood
immunization campaign in Bosnia’s autonomous Bosniak-Croat federation, where most
measles cases have been recorded.
The WHO warned in February that over half of the world’s countries will be at high or very
high risk of measles outbreaks by the end of the year unless urgent preventative measures
are taken.
