GENEVA, July 12, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Emergency vaccination during outbreaks of 
diseases like cholera, Ebola and measles have over the past quarter-century 
reduced deaths from such illnesses by nearly 60 percent, according to a new 
study.

A similar number of infections are also believed to have been prevented, 
while billions of euros have been generated in estimated economic benefit.

The Gavi vaccine alliance, which backed the study, said it collaborated with 
researchers at Burnet Institute in Australia to provide the world's first 
look at the historical impact of emergency immunisation efforts on public 
health and global health security.

"For the first time, we are able to comprehensively quantify the benefit, in 
human and economic terms, of deploying vaccines against outbreaks of some of 
the deadliest infectious diseases," Gavi chief Sania Nishtar said in a 
statement.

"This study demonstrates clearly the power of vaccines as a cost-effective 
countermeasure to the increasing risk the world faces from outbreaks."

The study, published this week in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) Global 
Health, examined 210 outbreaks of five infectious diseases -- cholera, Ebola, 
measles, meningitis and yellow fever -- in 49 lower-income countries between 
2000 and 2023.

Vaccine roll-outs in these settings had a dramatic impact, with the study 
showing they reduced both the number of infections and deaths by almost 60 
percent across the five diseases.

For some of the diseases the effect was far more dramatic.

Vaccination was shown to decrease deaths during yellow fever outbreaks by a 
full 99 percent, and 76 percent for Ebola.

At the same time, emergency vaccination significantly reduced the threat of 
outbreaks expanding.

It also estimated that the immunisation efforts carried out during the 210 
outbreaks generated nearly $32 billion in economic benefits just from 
averting deaths and years of life lost to disability.

That amount was however likely to be a significant underestimate of overall 
savings, it said, pointing out that it did not take into account outbreak 
response costs or the social and macro-economic impacts of disruptions 
created by large outbreaks.

The massive Ebola outbreak that hit West Africa in 2014, before the existence 
of approved vaccines, for instance saw cases pop up worldwide and is 
estimated to have cost the West African countries alone more than $53 
billion.

The study comes after the World Health Organization warned in April that 
outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles, meningitis, and 
yellow fever are on the rise globally amid misinformation and cuts to 
international aid.

Gavi, which helps vaccinate more than half the world's children against 
infectious diseases, is itself currently trying to secure a fresh round of 
funding in the face of the global aid cuts and after Washington last month 
announced it would stop backing the group.