June 21, 2016 By Ibrahim Tarawallie
Ministry of Health and Sanitation would in collaboration with its partners commence the Maternal and Child Health Week from 23 to 27 June, 2016 across the country.
During the course of the campaign, vitamin A supplements would be administered to children between 6-59 months, deworming with Albendazole for all children 12-59 months and defaulter tracing and vaccination of children under 0-23 months, according to Deputy Programme Manager of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation, Dr. Mariama Murray.
She told a presser yesterday in the ministry’s conference room that over 1.5million children within the aforementioned age bracket would be targeted.
She noted that the Vitamin A Supplement and Albendazole would be administered free of cost and encouraged parents and guardians to ensure that their children are available when the teams visit their various homes.
According to her, the ministry and its partners, including the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) would use the campaign as another platform to provide essential services and also regain the public confidence in the healthcare system.
“The objective of this week is to achieve at least 95% coverage for specific interventions. During the course of the campaign, antenatal services will also be provided for pregnant women. The Albendazole tablets will ensure that children are not at risk of going blind,” she said.
She stated that the goal of the campaign was to increase coverage for various life saving interventions that impact on the welfare of women and children, thus reducing maternal mortality and morbidity.
Also, UNICEF’s Victor Sule registered their commitment towards the success of the campaign and other future health interventions.
He disclosed that a total of 1.4milion doses of Albendazole and 1.6million of Vitamin A Supplements have been purchased by UNICEF to be administered to children during the course of the campaign.