UN agencies tell Pacific to vaccinate against measles

The World Health Organisation and the UN children's agency UNICEF are urging people in the Pacific to get immunised against measles.

They said this should to happen before travelling internationally, attending major events or community gatherings.

Vaccination provided the best protection against measles and parents should get their children immunised, the agencies said.

In October, Samoa and Tonga both declared measles outbreaks.

Both UNICEF and the WHO said they were continuing to provide resources to Pacific states to respond to the measles threat.