Press
Release
Uganda pushes forward with mass immunization
campaign against measles
Part of a Global Strategy to Reduce Measles Deaths by
Half
KAMPALA / NEW YORK / GENEVA, 13 November 2001 - As part
of a global effort to reduce measles deaths, the United
Nations Children's Fund said today that Uganda has launched
a massive immunization campaign with the goal of reaching
1 million children under the age of five in hard-to-reach
communities.
Measles is the most deadly of all vaccine-preventable
diseases, accounting for an estimated 777,000 childhood
deaths per year worldwide, with over half of these deaths
occurring in Africa. Apart from death, children who are
affected by measles may suffer from life-long disability
including brain damage, blindness and deafness.
" It is unacceptable for children to die from
measles when we have an effective, safe and inexpensive
vaccine that can prevent children from the scourge of
this disease," said Carol Bellamy, Executive
Director of UNICEF. "We have the know-how to tackle
the problem, but the challenge we face in getting every
child vaccinated is lack of adequate funds and political
leadership."
According to the World Health Organization, this campaign
will prevent over 15,000 childhood deaths in Uganda over
the next three years. This phase of the initiative was
launched in 10 of the 56 districts in the country, reaching
children in the most difficult-to-reach areas, including
displaced persons camps along the borders with Tanzania
and Rwanda. Taking advantage of the campaign, children
were also provided with Vitamin A capsules to boost their
resistance against infections.
Launching the campaign, the Minister of Health, Hon Brigadier
Jim Muhwezi said, "the Government is committed to
improving health, development and growth of all children
through cost-effective programmes like immunization."
The Uganda Red Cross, through its network of over 1300
volunteers, mobilized parents and caretakers to take children
for immunization. This effort contributed significantly
to the high turn out in the hardest to reach areas.
"We are pleased to work with the Ministry of Health,
American Red Cross, UNICEF, and WHO to ensure that parents
bring their children to receive this life-saving vaccine,"
said Alice Uwase, Acting Secretary General of the Uganda
Red Cross.
The WHO Representative in Uganda, Dr. Oladapo Walker,
reiterated the safety of vaccines used for childhood immunization
in Uganda. "Let me assure you that the vaccines currently
used by the Ministry of Health have no severe side effects."
UNICEF provided auto-disable syringes for the campaign,
ensuring safe injections. The syringes are designed for
one use only, eliminating the possibility of multiple
uses and the spread of infections. Once used, the disabled
syringes are collected in safety boxes and burned.
"Thanks to the expanding partnership for immunization
in Uganda, the contribution of the various partners made
the difference in the success of the mass measles campaign,"
said Dr. Iyorlumun Uhaa, Officer in Charge at the UNICEF
Kampala office.
Immunization is a key ingredient in helping children
attain the highest attainable standard of health. UNICEF
and WHO have jointly developed a strategy to reduce the
number of measles deaths by half by 2005. This will be
achieved through improved routine immunization and supplemental
campaigns that give children a second opportunity to be
immunized.
The key partners providing financial and technical support
to this joint strategy include the United Nations Foundation,
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
American Red Cross, Canadian International Development
Agency (CIDA), WHO, and UNICEF.
This year these agencies will support mass measles campaigns
in eight other African countries reaching 36 million children
and preventing an estimated 170,000 measles deaths over
three years. The selected countries are Mali, Burkina
Faso, Togo, Ghana, Cameroon, Tanzania, Benin, Uganda and
Kenya. Similar activities are also being supported in
14 countries in other parts of the world.
For further information please contact:
Ayazika Nakwagala
Information/Communication Officer
UNICEF, Kampala
Tel: 256-41-234591/2
anakwagala@unicef.org
Mohammad
Jalloh
Communication Officer
UNICEF, New York
Tel: 212-326-7516
mjalloh@unicef.org
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