The Measles Initiative, launched in 2001, is a long-term commitment and partnership among leaders in public health and supports the goal of reducing measles deaths globally by 90% by 2010 compared to 2000 estimates. Measles Initiative partners include the American Red Cross, UN Foundation, CDC, World Health Organization, and UNICEF.

Largely due to the technical and financial support of the Measles Initiative and the commitment from African governments, 217 million children have been vaccinated against measles and 1.2 million lives have been saved since 1999. Building on this achievement, in 2005, the Initiative has expanded its technical and financial support to countries in Asia, where total measles deaths are highest outside of sub-Saharan Africa. ** The Initiative will also continue the successful ‘integrated child health campaigns’ in which health workers provide not only measles vaccines, but also insecticide-treated nets for malaria prevention, vitamin A, de-worming medication and polio vaccines. ****

Since 2001, the Measles Initiative has mobilized more than $200 million and supported more than 40 African countries and three Asian countries in implementing high-quality measles vaccination campaigns. As a result, global measles deaths have dropped by 48% from 871,000 in 1999 to an estimated 454,000 in 2004 thanks to improvements in routing and supplementary immunization activities. The largest reduction occurred in Africa, the region with the highest burden of the disease, where estimated measles cases and deaths dropped by 60%.

GOAL
To reduce measles deaths globally by 90% by 2010 compared to 2000 estimates

STRATEGY
Support country efforts to carry out vaccination campaigns and routine immunization.

HOW THE INITIATIVE IS STRUCTURED
The mechanism for the Initiative is an American Red Cross-led partnership with operational support to measles burdened countries. The Initiative has adopted the highly successful Rotary-led global polio eradication initiative as a model. Rotary's strategy was two-fold: repeated vaccination campaigns reinforced by routine vaccination. The Initiative employs a similar approach - initial mass catch-up campaigns to vaccinate every child who may be at risk with follow-up campaigns three to four years later to vaccinate children who have been born sine the catch-up campaign.

PARTNERS
American Red Cross
United Nations Foundation (UN Foundation)
United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
World Health Organization (WHO)
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)

IMPACT
For as little as US $1, one child can be vaccinated against measles. As of 2005, 217 million children received measles vaccinations, resulting in 1.2 million lives saved.

BACKGROUND OF INITIATIVE
In February of 2001, American Red Cross convened a meeting with other global healthcare organizations. American Red Cross, CDC, UNICEF, UN Foundation, and WHO met to discuss the growing problem of measles in Africa. The organizations looked at problems that afflict the world and found that measles was a big one. What is so tragic about these deaths is that they are preventable.

In the battle to reduce mortality from measles, partnership is crucial because each player brings a different strength and talent to bear. WHO designs the policies and health guidelines for each country to ensure proper, safe steps are taken during immunization campaigns. UNICEF is the only organization allowed to import the vaccine into most developing countries and has a sophisticated logistics capacity as well as great stature in the country. CDC provides funding and the technical and scientific basis for the policies and advises countries on program planning. The UN Foundation provides a substantial amount of funding as well as the financial mechanisms necessary to move funds between agencies and to countries. American Red Cross provides funding and has the network of Red Cross societies around the world and the volunteers to do social mobilization, ensuring each child has a chance to be vaccinated.

"We are allowing thousands of children to die," said a Ugandan UNICEF official at a briefing in Kampala. "Immunization is the right of every child."

"UNICEF cannot do this alone. It is something no one agency can do alone," says Dr. Iyor Kimun Uhaa, head of early childhood care and development for UNICEF in Uganda. "We have done everything right - getting the vaccine here, etc. What we have failed to do is work at the grass roots level to reach mothers. When I went to Mbarara district, I saw so many mothers - I saw Red Cross mobilizing - saw Red Cross everywhere. I saw firsthand the value of partnership," Dr. Uhaa continued.

"It is unacceptable for so many children to die of a disease that is so easy to prevent," said Dr. Edward Hoekstra, senior advisor on measles for UNICEF. "Our key partners have been crucial in reducing mortality in Africa."

**WHO Weekly Epidemiological Record 10 March 2006 on Progress in Reducing Global Measles Deaths; 1999-2004 (http://www.who.int/wer/2006/wer8110.pdf)
****WHO/UNICEF press release (http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2006/pr11/en/index.html)