Grace Mwale no gree comot from side of her two-year-old pikin Chisomo for one clinic for Lilongwe for three nights straight for January 2024, her mind dey run back to wetin she fit miss wey fit cause everything.

Fever start first; then bad, dry cough. Chisomo eye turn red and watery, and she begin dey sensitive to light.

For inside her mouth, small white spots show for inflamed tissue — na the Koplik spots wey doctors sabi as measles. Then rash show — flat and red, e spread from her hairline go down.

Grace, wey be Malawian, tell TRT Afrika say 'e be like fire wey dey spread for her skin. The cough, the high fever... I just dey pray. The doctors work tire. Dem tell me say her condition don progress to pneumonia.'

Chisomo survive, but e take months before she return to health.

Grace say, 'I bin think say measles na normal childhood rash. I no sabi say e fit turn serious like this. I no go ever forget how my pikin suffer. Now, everybody wey I sabi, I dey tell dem: vaccination no be optional, na shield wey you suppose give your pikin.'

Thousands of miles away, for the remote Kasai region of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Julien Kabasele story get the same pattern of symptoms. But him three-year-old son Emmanuel no be lucky like Chisomo.

Julien remember say, 'my son collect him first measles shot for one mobile clinic last year. Dem write him name for one book and tell us make we waka go the health centre after six months for the second dose.'

But the health centre far — na long bicycle ride — and that year the rain na the worst people remember. Flood everywhere. By the time Julien carry him son go the centre, measles don dey run for their community.

Julien tell TRT Afrika, 'e get fever wey high wey make am shake. E get bad cough, body full of rashes. We try traditional medicines but dem no fit this disease. E begin dey weak, im breathing come dey irregular.'

Emmanuel die from measles complications for local clinic. Him never get the advanced medical care wey him need.

Julien dey regret: 'That second shot we miss, e fit don save am.'

Immunisation gaps

One World Health Organisation (WHO) report wey dem release on November 28 talk say global immunisation programmes don cause 88% fall for measles deaths since 2000, and this don save nearly 59 million lives.

For the other side, for 2024 alone about 95,000 people die from the very contagious virus, most of dem na children under five.

These deaths mostly follow the usual course: fever and cough, then rash, and many times pneumonia, severe diarrhoea, encephalitis (brain inflammation) or blindness.

WHO director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus talk say, 'Measles na the most contagious virus for the world, and the data show again how e fit use any gap wey dey for our collective defence. Every death from disease wey fit prevent with one effective and low-cost vaccine no suppose happen.'

Even though global cases dey rise — WHO estimate say about 11 million infections report for 2024, almost 800,000 more than 2019 — the WHO African Region don achieve 40% drop for cases and 50% reduction for deaths since 2019. Dem attribute this improvement to efforts to increase immunisation coverage for several countries.

But this progress hide differences inside the continent. While Botswana, Rwanda, Senegal and Tanzania report big falls in measles because dem strengthen immunisation programmes, DRC, Ethiopia, Madagascar and Angola still face outbreaks wey dem link to low vaccination rates.

Around the world, more than 30 million children miss their measles doses in 2024. One third of those children come from WHO's African and Eastern Mediterranean regions. Altogether 59 countries report big or disruptive measles outbreaks, almost three times the number for 2021.

Historic milestone

This year, Cabo Verde, Mauritius and Seychelles become the first countries in the WHO African Region to eliminate measles, joining 93 other countries around the world wey don do the same.

But funding cuts dey affect surveillance and immunisation programmes. WHO Immunisation Agenda 2030 Mid-Term Review warn say measles dey usually the first disease wey go come back when vaccination level drop.

For parents wey don face the virus, the numbers mean more than just data.

Grace conclude: 'We don pass through this, and we sabi how dangerous measles fit be. No wait make your pikin catch am before you act. Shield dey, and you better use am.'