Life
August 30, 2005
Polio campaign launched in Madagascar
Madagascar government launched a campaign on Monday to immunize some 650,000 children under the age of five against polio in the southern region of the country.
"Polio is one of the world's most crippling and yet most preventable diseases," said a spokesman within the Ministry of Health.
"Our government has made remarkable advances in recent years in improving child health. Under-five mortality, for instance, has fallen by almost half in the past decade. However, the detection of two polio cases in the south demanded an immediate response. That is why we decided to launch this campaign," he said.
The campaign, which will be organized in two phases, cost a total of 600,000 US dollars and was made possible through the support of several international organizations such as World Health Organization, the Pasteur Institute and UNICEF.
Close to 9,000 health workers and community volunteers will travel door-to-door across the southern region of the country to ensure that the 650,000 children targeted for the campaign get their two doses of the oral polio vaccine.
"UNICEF would like to congratulate the government for its rapid response in organizing this campaign, but we would also like to stress the importance of stepping up and improving routine surveillance," said UNICEF's Representative to Madagascar, Barbara Bentein.
"The detection of polio in this country (after a two-year absence) has set back eradication efforts by at least three years, " she went on to add.
In order for a country to be declared polio-free, an independent committee must testify to the fact that there have been no polio cases for three consecutive years.
"The next challenge now is to ensure that routine immunization coverage is strengthened and maintained," said Bentein.
Source: Xinhua
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