In Afghanistan, children are dying due to measles outbreaks. According to UN estimates, there will be 1.1 million severely malnourished children in Afghanistan in 2022 who are particularly at risk of dying from the disease. However, two doses of the inexpensive, highly effective measles vaccine prevents infection, illness, and death. The major challenge to measles prevention in Afghanistan has been a failure to reach all children.

Between January and August 2022, 65,470 suspected measles cases and 367 measles deaths were reported in Afghanistan; this likely represents an underestimate, as causes of illness and mortality are not systematically recorded by the public health system.