The World Health Organizations has warned that measles is making a rapid comeback in African, Asian and even some European countries, including Bulgaria, because of a lack of vaccination.

"There is a widespread resurgence of measles with these outbreaks in over 30 African countries, some of which are seeing very high case fatality ratios," WHO expert Peter Strebel told a news briefing.

Some 8,000 children in Bulgaria also had the highly-contagious disease during the period, he said.

"Being one of the most contagious diseases, measles is making a rapid comeback," he stressed.

Measles deaths among young children fell to 118,000 in 2008, compared with 1.1 million in 2000, according to WHO.

But the number of cases has surged over the past year, with large outbreaks reported in 30 African countries — from Mauritania to Zambia and Angola to Ethiopia — and Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and Bulgaria.

According to Strebel starting in 2008, there has been a considerable decline in funding and political commitment for measles control that has resulted in the stagnation of progress.

“More alarmingly, WHO estimates that the combined effect of decreased financial and political commitment could result in a return to over 500,000 measles deaths a year by 2012, wiping out the gains made over the past 18 years," added Strebel.

The 193 member states of the WHO will meet this week in Geneva to adopt a series of measures up to 2015 aimed at cutting measles cases to less than five per million persons as well as reducing mortality by 95 percent from its 2000 levels.

Turkish authorities have tightened border controls over fears of a spread of measles from neighbouring Bulgaria.

The measles epidemic in Bulgaria has affected 18,000 people, primarily from the Roma minority. Twenty have died of disease.