A measles outbreak has killed 80 children in Zimbabwe since April, the ministry of health has said in a statement seen by Reuters on Sunday.

"The ministry of health and child care wishes to inform the public that the ongoing outbreak of measles which was first reported on 10th of April has since spread nationwide following church gatherings," Health Secretary Jasper Chimedza said in a statement. "These gathering which were attended by people from different provinces of the country with unknown vaccination status led to the spread of measles to previously unaffected areas."

Chimedza said that as of Thursday, 1,036 suspected cases and 125 confirmed cases had been reported since the outbreak.

(With input from Reuters)