Nearly three million children are missing out on regular vaccinations : Myanmar

According to the National Unity Government (NUG) Ministry of Health statistics, nearly three million children between the ages of birth and five years old in Myanmar, which has been under military rule, are missing out on regular vaccinations.

Sagaing, where the military conflict is raging, not curved Chin Kayah and Karen are losing the right to vaccinate their children in Yangon, Mandalay In areas where there is no conflict, such as Nay Pyi Taw, routine vaccinations are also suspended.

In addition to the difficulty of transportation due to the fighting, it is also difficult to get vaccines to the conflict areas due to restrictions on the medical transport of the military council troops.

"Most children are suffering from measles and hepatitis because they don't have access to regular vaccinations."

Sagaing Division A resident, who did not want to be named for security reasons, said that many children in Mawlai Township do not receive vaccinations.

"During pregnancy, you must not take any other vaccine except the tetanus vaccine given by the health team of Mawlai Township Public Administration. It's not easy to transport through the Sikansi side. It's because we have to carry the ice with what. Since the Spring Revolution has come in more than three or four years, almost all pregnant women and children born during it will not be vaccinated."

Most of the children are suffering from measles and hepatitis due to lack of access to regular vaccinations, he said.

In Myanmar, children from birth to under five years of age suffer from TB cerebral palsy, tetanus polio measles diphtheria, whooping cough Vaccination according to age for diseases such as hepatitis B. They have to take medicine.

"Due to the aftermath of the military coup, routine immunization activities for children have been suspended."

Chin State Some war refugees from Min Tu Township rely on vaccines from India. A person in charge of the army camp, who did not want to be named for security reasons, said, "They were taken from the Indian side and then stabbed. It's not that I don't punch, punched. But there are too many difficulties, so there is no way to give a child the full amount of vaccines it needs to be injected. There are many challenges in our Min Tu Township. All of this has to be resolved. We need a lot of help for these things," he said.

He said that when the vaccines were transported, they could not provide the necessary cooling, so most of them were damaged and expired.

In Kayah State, where the armed conflict is raging, there are nearly 40,000 children from birth to five years old, but only over 6,000 have been vaccinated, according to the Karenni Human Rights Group (KnHRG).

Karenni Human Rights Group (KnHRG) Director Kobanya said that they are planning a long-term plan for children who are not allowed to be vaccinated.

"I have only received a few thousand letters. Even so, we still can't inject. Now we are going according to the dose. Because of this, until now, I can get one cut. But in order to complete the frequency (Dose), there is a pattern that must be continued with the two-year plan."

According to KnHRG, there are more than 200,000 war refugees in the entire Kayah state, and most of them are displaced by the fighting, he said. Therefore, health care is weak and most children have herpes, measles They suffer from rubella and skin diseases.

"Children who grow up without regular vaccinations may have difficulties with the immune system."

Every time I bend, An unnamed war refugee woman from So Township is also worried about her three-year-old daughter who does not receive regular vaccinations.

"I was born in the middle of the war, so I still haven't been vaccinated. So I pray that my daughter will grow up healthy and disease-free.”

The community of CDM health workers pointed out that due to the consequences of the military coup, routine vaccination of children was suspended.

Children who grow up without regular vaccinations may face difficulties in the area of ​​resistance to disease, according to Dr. Phul Wai, a non-violent civil disobedience movement CDM health worker.

"There are preventable and fatal diseases in children's lifetime. Here, there are hepatitis B viruses. There are different types of meningitis. Many lives have been lost because of these things, and we don't wait until these things happen to us, but we can protect children's lives by releasing vaccines in advance and giving them injections in advance. These are the possible side effects.”

He said that among ASEAN countries in the region, Myanmar has the highest number of deaths of children under the age of five.

The NUG government's health minister's office, Dr. Nyu, urged international organizations to help children throughout Myanmar get enough vaccinations.

"Children living in war-torn areas and ethnic borders have not received any vaccines. International organizations that are responsible for ensuring that children in Myanmar receive enough vaccines, such as Gaby, Organizations such as UNICEF and WHO. So Gabby, We urge UNICEF and WHO to work together as soon as possible to ensure that children in our war-torn areas and across ethnic borders receive vaccines.”

Since last year 2023, we have developed a project to carry out regular vaccination work and two thousand children in Kayah State. He said that he was able to inject a thousand children in Magway and Sagaing. Although the NUG Health Department is providing vaccinations in conflict areas, there are still many areas that cannot be reached due to difficulties.

RFA contacted Dr. Than Naing Soe, Regional Director of Public Health and Treatment Department, to find out more about this matter, but he did not answer the phone.

12 types of vaccines for children from birth to one and a half years old in Myanmar. For girls, the Ministry of Health announced that there are 13 types of vaccines in total because they have to get an additional vaccine for cervical cancer.