Honourable Minister Shiozaki, and other respected officials of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare;
Colleagues from the National Institute of Infectious Diseases;
Ladies and gentlemen:
It is an honour to be here to celebrate the achievement of measles elimination by the Government of Japan.
We all know that measles is a highly contagious and deadly disease. In 1980, before vaccination was widespread, measles caused about 2.6 million deaths a year. The disease is still a leading cause of death among young children.
While young children are at the highest risk, any person not protected with two doses of vaccine runs the risk of measles infection and all its complications.
The good news is that measles can be eliminated when enough people are immunized. When 95% of a population is protected, the virus can no longer pass from person to person. And unlike other infectious diseases, the measles virus only affects human beings.
In order to verify measles elimination, however, a country must have no cases of native strain measles for 36 months. Even after elimination, countries must guard against imported measles virus. If an imported strain is detected, transmission must be interrupted within 12 months in order for a country to maintain its elimination status.
Surveillance is critical in these cases. To detect imported cases quickly — and stop potential outbreaks — countries must maintain a high-quality surveillance system.
The Western Pacific Regional Verification Commission is an independent advisory body that reviews countries' elimination reports. The commission is made up of 14 experts appointed by the WHO Regional Office.
Measles elimination in Japan is an important step in the progress towards elimination in the entire Western Pacific Region.
On behalf of WHO, I would like to commend the expertise and hard work of the Japan National Verification Committee for Measles Elimination and the National Advisory Committee on Measles and Rubella Control.
I also want to congratulate the Government of Japan for its tireless efforts to protect the health and well-being of people — not only in Japan, but also throughout the Western Pacific Region.
Thank you.