New Delhi, April 29 : Vaccines have saved 38 million lives in South-East Asia, including India, said World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday, as part of the World Immunisation Week.

World Immunisation Week is marked annually in the last week of April (24th-30th), to promote the use of vaccines to protect people of all ages against disease.

'Each year, in the last week of April, we come together to celebrate World Immunization Week -- a powerful reminder of the life-saving impact of vaccines. This year's theme, 'Immunization for all is humanly possible,' reinforces our collective commitment to protect every individual, at every age, from vaccine-preventable diseases,' said Saima Wazed, Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia.

She noted that in the last five decades, 'vaccines have saved over 154 million lives globally -- an average of six lives every minute'.

'Our WHO South-East Asia Region has been at the forefront, with an estimated 38 million lives saved across the Region,' Wazed added.

Notably, the region has maintained wild poliovirus-free status and has also upheld the elimination of maternal and neonatal tetanus as a public health concern.

'Four of our countries have eliminated measles, five have eliminated rubella, and six have achieved control of hepatitis B through immunisation. This has all led to unprecedented improvements in childhood survival,' the Regional Director said.

'In the past two years, three of our countries have launched national HPV vaccination programmes. This is a major step forward in protecting adolescents' health,' she added.

Moreover, the region proudly vaccinates over 40 million pregnant women and 37 million newborns each year as well as contributing 46 per cent of the global vaccine supply.

Yet, 'more than 2 million children remain completely unvaccinated,' Wazed said, stressing the need for continuing efforts as the threat of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks is growing worldwide.

She also noted the shrinking global health budgets that are placing additional strain on immunisation programmes, surveillance systems, and on outbreak response capacities.

Wazed urged the need to 'invest in routine immunisation; embrace innovation and combat vaccine hesitancy'.

'On World Immunisation Week, join us in spreading the message that vaccines are safe, that vaccines save lives, and immunisation for all is essential,' she said.

/IANS