Over 200 000 measles vaccine administered in Western Cape

The Western Cape Department of Health says just over 207 000 measles vaccines have been administered as part of its ongoing campaign.

The National Institute for Communicable Diseases has declared a measles outbreak in the province following the detection of five laboratory-confirmed cases in Cape Town.

An outbreak is defined as the occurrence of three or more confirmed measles cases in a district or sub-district within one month.

Department spokesperson Byron La Hoe says 1.7 million children under the age of 15 need to be vaccinated as part of the ongoing campaign by the end of March.

VIDEO | Christine Muhigana, UNICEF South Africa’s representative, elaborates below: