Thousands of returnees have been arriving sick and exhausted at the Bulukat transit centre in Malakal, northeastern South Sudan, after travelling almost 72 hours by boats on the White Nile River.
In March 2023, Turkana County declared a measles outbreak following the confirmation of cases and since then eight deaths have been reported. Additionally, communities continue to grapple with a persistent malaria outbreak.
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams are recording a concerning rise in measles and malnutrition cases in the organization’s facilities in South Sudan.
More than 140,000 people, fleeing from Khartoum, have arrived in White Nile state.
Last week, up to 286 children were taken care of in the wards of the Adré paediatric hospital where MSF teams work - by comparison, around fifty children were being treated at the same time last year.
This vaccination campaign against measles and other diseases is part of the emergency response launched by the medical organization in the town of Birao, in northern Central African Republic, where refugees from Sudan have been relocated.
Measles is absolutely preventable through vaccination. The measles vaccine includes two doses and is recommended as part of the World Health Organization’s expanded programme on immunisation.
