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DISASTER NEWS
Pakistan to launch
record measles vaccination drive
28 Jun 2007
Pakistan is
set to launch the largest measles
vaccination campaign in the world’s history.
The Pakistani government, United Nations
Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and World Health
Organization (WHO) said on Thursday (June
28) that they plan to immunize 63 million
children starting July 2 in southwestern
Baluchistan province. The campaign will
target all children in the country up to 13
years of age and is scheduled to be
completed in March 2008. Measles is one of
the biggest threats to young people in
Pakistan, annually infecting one million
children, of whom 21,000 die. However, only
69 percent of young people are currently
vaccinated. The announcement of this
campaign launch follows an earlier statement
this month that grants received from the
Measles Initiative surpassed US$30 million,
making this vaccination campaign possible on
a country-wide scale. Vaccinations will be
administered at schools and government-run
clinics, with medics making special efforts
to reach isolated mountainous communities.
Although routine measles injection campaigns
are not uncommon, the scale of this effort
is significantly different. “We will have to
achieve high coverage, ensure high social
mobilization and safe vaccination to
significantly reduce child mortality and
morbidity,” said Melissa Corkum, UNICEF
program communication officer. Measles, also
known as rubeola, is a respiratory infection
with the telltale symptom being a rash that
spreads downward over the face, neck and
body. Measles claims the lives of up to 10
percent of those infected, causes male
sterility and weakens children’s immunity.
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