3.8m children targeted in measles vaccination campaign in Somalia

A new round of measles vaccination campaign will this week target 3.8 million children in south-central regions and Somaliland, UNICEF and WHO have said.

The two UN bodies said Monday 2,800 suspected cases of measles had been reported affecting mainly Banaadir, Bay and Mudug regions since January warning the continuing drought expected to affect more than 1.2 million children this year could escalate the situation.

“The situation is especially critical for millions of under-vaccinated, weak and vulnerable children who are susceptible to contracting infectious diseases,” UNICEF country representative Steven Lauwerier said.”

“More than 1.2 million children are projected to be at risk of acute malnutrition in the next 12 months. These children are nine times more likely to die of killer diseases such as measles and acute watery diarrhea /cholera than healthy children.”

The campaign which is expected to reach 4.7 million children upon completion is aimed at improve immunity against measles and reach unvaccinated children. More than 23,000 suspected cases of measles was reported last year which was six times as many in 2016 with 83% of those affected being children under the age of ten. Nearly 600,000 children aged between six months and five years were vaccinated against measles in hard-to-reach and hotspot areas across Somalia last year, the two bodies said.

“The campaign will intensify efforts to improve immunity against measles and reach unvaccinated children. As we saw last year when partners responded to a major cholera outbreak, with the right interventions, WHO and health authorities are confident that similar success may be seen in controlling this measles outbreak,” said Dr Ghulam Popal, WHO Representative in Somalia.

UNICEF has procured and distributed over 4.7 million doses of measles vaccine and organized 1,700 social mobilizers to encourage families to vaccinate children and adults who are not or think they might not be fully immunized. This will be accompanied by Vitamin A supplementation which will help to boost immunity.

The response is supported through funding from Alwaleed Philanthropies (Saudi Arabia), the Measles and Rubella Initiative, WHO, and the Somalia Humanitarian Fund.

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