World Immunisation Day 2025: How vaccines protect communities worldwide

Immunisation prevents up to five million deaths every year, yet millions remain unprotected. World Immunisation Day 2025 calls for stronger global and local action

From eradicating smallpox to managing Covid-19 and eliminating polio in India, vaccines have transformed public health. Immunisation not only protects individuals but also strengthens entire communities through herd immunity, reducing disease outbreaks and healthcare costs while building resilience against future pandemics.

 

Observed every year on November 10, World Immunisation Day serves as a reminder of how vaccines save lives and why equitable access remains essential.

 

Vaccines save millions — but gaps remain

 

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), immunisation has saved over 154 million lives in the past five decades, roughly six lives every minute.

 

Key facts:

 

 

• Vaccines protect against 30+ preventable diseases, including measles, hepatitis, HPV, and polio.
• In 2023, over 22 million children missed their first measles dose.
• In 2024, 14.3 million infants missed their initial DTP (diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis) vaccine.
• 5.6 million were only partially vaccinated.

 

Vaccines remain among the most affordable and effective global health tools, yet inequitable access, misinformation, and vaccine hesitancy continue to endanger progress.

 

Experts warn that refusal or delay in vaccination not only risks individual health but also revives diseases once under control, straining fragile health systems.

 

India’s focus on universal vaccination

 

India’s Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP), among the world’s largest, covers 26.5 million infants and 29 million pregnant women annually.

 

Progress so far:

 

• Full Immunisation Coverage (2023–24): 93 per cent.
• Polio eliminated in 2014, maternal and neonatal tetanus in 2015.
• Mission Indradhanush (since 2014) has reached 54.6 million children and 13.2 million pregnant women across 12 phases.
• Covid-19 Vaccination Programme: Over 2.2 billion doses administered; 97 per cent received at least one dose, 90 per cent fully vaccinated.

 

Despite this progress, adult immunisation remains low. A 2023 survey showed that only 16 per cent of adults over 50 had received any adult vaccine, underscoring the need to expand preventive healthcare beyond childhood.

 

Why immunisation matters

 

Immunisation offers far-reaching health, social, and economic benefits:

 

• Prevents deadly diseases: Reduces mortality and hospitalisation from infections.
• Builds herd immunity: Protects vulnerable populations like infants and the elderly.
• Cuts healthcare costs: Prevention costs less than treatment.
• Protects borders: Prevents disease spread across nations, as seen with Covid-19.
• Drives eradication: Successes like smallpox elimination and near-end of polio prove what sustained vaccination can achieve.

 

The road ahead

 

As World Immunisation Day 2025 highlights, closing global vaccine gaps requires stronger systems, public trust, and sustained funding.    Also Read: How India's vaccine programme ensures access for all, even remote areas    For more health updates, follow #HealthwithBS