TUHIN SHUBHRA ADHIKARY

The government is set to launch its nationwide Vitamin A Plus Campaign on June 28, targeting 2.40 crore children aged six months to under five years -- 58 lakh more than the target set for the measles-rubella campaign for the same age bracket earlier this year.

During the measles-rubella campaign, conducted in phases in April and May, the government aimed to vaccinate 1.82 crore children. The health directorate later reported achieving 103 percent coverage of that target.

However, the rise in the target population within just two months has raised questions among public health experts about the reliability of the government’s child population estimates.

Experts say such a gap between two nationwide campaigns targeting the same age group points to weaknesses in data planning and could undermine the effectiveness of public health interventions.

The discrepancy is particularly significant as Bangladesh continues to report around 1,000 new measles infections daily, despite authorities claiming to have exceeded the vaccination target during the measles-rubella drive.

At a press conference at the secretariat yesterday, State Minister for Health MA Muhith said Vitamin A capsules will be distributed through around 1,20,000 centres nationwide, including nearly 500 mobile centres at bus terminals, railway stations, and launch ghats, from 8:00am to 4:00pm.

In hard-to-reach areas across 58 upazilas, a four-day child-searching drive will be conducted after the campaign to identify children who were left out and provide them with Vitamin A capsules, he said.

Muhith also said a second round of the campaign will be held in December.

The campaign, usually conducted twice a year, was last held in March 2025 and remained suspended afterwards due to funding shortages and procurement complications.

Health experts warned that such prolonged interruptions in holding these campaigns could increase malnutrition and weaken immunity, making measles infections more severe.

BIG GAP BETWEEN TARGETS

Amid an unprecedented measles outbreak, the government launched the emergency measles-rubella campaign first in 30 high-burden upazilas, then in four city corporations, and finally across the country.

The campaign targeted 1.82 crore children aged six months to under five years. By May 20, 1.83 crore children had been vaccinated, achieving 102 percent of the target, according to official data.

The government later continued the campaign, saying some children still remained out of coverage.

However, the target for the upcoming Vitamin A Plus Campaign for the same age group has now been set at 2.40 crore children.

Mohammed Eunus Ali, director of the Institute of Public Health Nutrition (IPHN), which is implementing the campaign, said the new target was based on updated data collected from civil surgeons’ offices and city corporations.

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