"Mauritius has always targeted, and successfully achieved, measles vaccination coverage rates of more than 90% for both measles and rubella, thereby maintaining herd immunity," stated the Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr Kailesh Kumar Singh Jagutpal.
He was speaking at the closing ceremony of a five-day workshop on 'Measles: Towards Elimination', held on Friday 19 April 2024, at Royal Green in Réduit. The event was organised by the Ministry of Health and Wellness in collaboration with the World Health Organisation. The aim was to fine-tune the 'Mauritius Progress Report towards Measles Elimination' to strengthen the case of Mauritius as a zero-measles country.
Dr Jagutpal underlined that the Ministry's commitment to the vaccination programme and surveillance had so far ensured that the population was adequately protected.
"Unvaccinated young children as well as unvaccinated pregnant women are at highest risk of measles and its complications," he pointed out. He indicated that the vaccination to combat the spread of measles was introduced in Mauritius in 1982 and that the African Region was working towards the goal of elimination of measles and rubella in at least 80 % of countries by 2030.
"Mauritius," he emphasised, "is a strong candidate for measles and rubella elimination, and in 2023, some 17,300 doses of measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccinations were administered to newborns," he remarked.
The Health Minister further highlighted that in order to obtain the certification for measles elimination, the country must produce strong evidence compiled in the annual progress report. In this regard, he mentioned that a Technical Working Group had been set up and had submitted its progress report to the Regional Verification Committee and subsequently to the National Verification Committee last year.
He was hopeful that during the workshop participants had opportunities to devise means to fine-tune laboratory data and to strengthen the Expanded Programme of Immunisation to boost surveillance and reporting.
