Kyrgyzstan measles outbreak tops 4,000 in 2025
Officials with the Kyrgyzstan health ministry are reporting 4,055 measles cases since the beginning of 2025, including eight fatalities among children.
"There is a major outbreak of measles throughout the region. The country is in an extremely dangerous situation. If six deaths were registered in the whole of last year, then in January and February of this year alone the disease has already claimed the lives of eight children. This is unacceptable. Every district leader must sound the alarm and take personal control of the situation. We must strengthen measures to ensure universal vaccination. We are talking about the lives and health of our children," said Deputy Prime Minister Edil Baisalov.
A strong increase in measles cases has been observed in Bishkek, Osh, Chui and Osh regions.
Deputy Minister of Health, Bubuzhan Arykbaeva said the epidemiological situation concerning measles in the republic remains unstable and tense.
Among those infected, 95 percent are unvaccinated. The majority are children under 12 months old (32 percent) and children whose parents refused vaccinations (44 percent).
“Vaccination is a social norm for most families, but some of the population refuses it. Three stages of additional catch-up vaccination have been carried out in the country since 2024, covering 918,000 children.
“According to the results of 2024, about 14,400 cases of measles were registered in the Kyrgyz Republic. The main reason for the increase in the incidence rate is the low vaccination coverage, which is only 63 percent in the capital city of Bishkek”, Bubuzhan Arykbaeva said.
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She emphasized that vaccination safety issues may raise doubts, but the vaccine has undergone all the necessary scientific research and has proven its effectiveness.
“Vaccination is not just a medical procedure, but your concern for the health of the child. Vaccination protects children from serious diseases that have severe consequences,” the Deputy Minister addressed the parents.