Children and youth

Global Child Vaccination Rates Stall, Millions at Risk

Published JUN 25 2025

Story

Above: A health worker gives a dose of polio vaccine to a child in Kabul, Afghanistan, on April 21, 2025. Image credit: Saifurahman Safi/Xinhua/Getty Images

The Facts

Global childhood vaccination coverage has stalled or reversed since 2010, with measles vaccination rates declining in 100 of 204 countries in 2010-19, leaving millions vulnerable, a University of Washington study says.
The Telegraph
guardian
The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted vaccination efforts, resulting in over 15 million children missing diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis and measles vaccines in 2023, and millions missing the polio vaccine.
France 24
The Nightly
RNZ
More than half of the world's 15.7 million completely unvaccinated children in 2023 lived in just eight countries: Nigeria, India, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, Indonesia, and Brazil, with the highest concentrations in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
The Globe and Mail
The Nightly
High-income countries are also experiencing vaccination declines, with 21 of 36 wealthy nations seeing drops in coverage for at least one recommended vaccine, including Australia, ranking the sixth highest for unvaccinated children with 92.9% coverage.
Newsmax
Au
RNZ
The study suggest that vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks are increasing globally, with Europe reporting a tenfold increase in measles cases in 2024 compared to 2023, while the U.S. recorded over 1,000 measles cases across 30 states in early 2025, already surpassing 2024's total.
France 24
Newsmax
The WHO's immunization program has prevented 154 million childhood deaths over 50 years, but current trends threaten the 2030 global target of 90% vaccination coverage, with researchers citing vaccine misinformation as a primary challenge.
NPR Online News
The Telegraph

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

When individual choice endangers innocent lives, it ceases to be valid. Plummeting vaccination rates have unleashed preventable diseases, threatening vulnerable children who cannot protect themselves. Society must prioritize collective safety over personal preference — mandatory vaccination isn't tyranny, it's a moral obligation.

Debating Matters

Independent

Narrative B

Compulsion breeds distrust, not compliance. Threatened families retreat from mainstream medicine entirely, exploiting loopholes while damaging doctor-patient relationships. Countries without mandates achieve higher rates through compassionate care and trust-building. Force fractures the very foundation upon which successful immunization programs depend.

The Telegraph