This statement was signed by Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare Olivér Várhelyi, WHO Regional Director for Europe Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, and UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia Regina De Dominicis
As the 20th European Immunisation Week kicks off today, we celebrate the incredible progress vaccination has made to protect people's health over the past two decades and call for bold leadership and enhanced commitment to sustain this progress in the years to come.
In 2007, European Immunisation Week was rolled out across 53 countries in Europe and Central Asia to increase awareness of the need and right for every child to be protected from vaccine-preventable diseases. Since then, the annual week has ensured many people across the WHO European Region are informed and protected, while national immunisation programmes have also improved public health.
Across the world, vaccination has saved an estimated 154 million lives since 1974. In the European region, high vaccination coverage has dramatically reduced the burden of vaccine-preventable diseases. For example, the WHO European Region has successfully remained free of endemic polio since 2002, has nearly achieved regional elimination of measles and rubella, and has also seen dramatic decreases in reported cases of many diseases. From 2000 to 2024, cases of rubella decreased by over 99%, diphtheria by 90% and mumps by 95%. Many countries have also expanded immunisation to protect children against other life-threatening diseases including meningitis, pneumonia and rotavirus. Almost all countries in the region include the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine in their immunisation schedules to prevent cervical and other forms of cancer. Furthermore, pregnant women can now be protected against diseases like pertussis, influenza, COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), helping to keep them, and their newborns, safe and healthy.
Yet immunisation rates in some countries are declining, while the number of countries experiencing large and disruptive outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases is increasing. In 2024, more than 298,000 cases of pertussis were reported in the WHO European Region, the highest number ever recorded. In the same year, measles cases surpassed 127,000 – the highest number in 27 years.
Some of this can be attributed to lack of awareness, misinformation, and distrust in vaccines or health authorities. However, these outbreaks also reveal uneven immunisation coverage and weaknesses in immunisation programmes and primary health care systems. At the same time, investments in immunisation programmes are important in order to maintain the gains and sustainability of current efforts.
Europe cannot afford to move backwards. It is imperative to reinforce national and regional immunisation programmes and to accelerate global coordinated actions. To this end, the European Commission has already dedicated considerable resources to supporting immunisation efforts both within the European Union and globally.
UNICEF, WHO and the European Commission will also continue to work together, and with all partners, to overcome today's serious challenges to immunisation. Together we want to champion children's health and serve marginalised communities that lack equitable access to vaccines. Our message is simple and clear: vaccines work, they save lives, and they protect our communities.
