The conflict in Sudan has pushed immunization rates in the country back almost 40 years, putting children at grave risk of deadly but preventable diseases.

According to data published today by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, more than half of the infants – at least 880,000 children - due to receive their first dose of the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP1) vaccine in Sudan last year missed out. The DTP vaccine is used as the global marker for immunization coverage. Infants who do not receive a single dose of DPT are identified as ‘zero-dose children’ and face life-threatening risks. Sudan now has the lowest DTP1 coverage in the world.