ANTANANARIVO, April 15 (Xinhua) -- Madagascan authorities have been urging the public to be vaccinated against measles, which has been plaguing the country since September 2018, local media reported.

The third phase of the national measles vaccination campaign ended on April 5, and local media reported an effective outcome.

Boanamary town of the district of Mahajanga II, one of the most affected areas of the ongoing epidemic, has seen a vaccination rate of 89.7 percent, according to media reports.

The vaccination campaign mainly targeted children aged six months to nine years in all 22 regions of Madagascar.

A report of Madagascan health authorities published on Tuesday recorded 121,521 measles cases in the country from Sept. 3, 2018 to March 27, 2019.

The outbreak was largely due to a low vaccination rate, as some parents refused to immunize their children because of certain local religious customs, the Madagascar Express reported.

Media also cited malnutrition as one of the factors that could have worsened the situation.