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About this episode

WAJID, Southern Somalia, 1 April 2009 For the first time ever in Somalia, a Child Health Days campaign has been implemented nation-wide by UNICEF, the World Health Organization, local authorities, communities and non-governmental partners.In a country where routine immunization coverage is low and basic health care services are scarce, this large-scale health outreach targets every child under five with immunization against measles, polio, diphtheria, pertusis and tetanus.The child survival package also includes vitamin A supplements, de-worming tablets, oral rehydration salts to treat diarrhoea, and water treatment tablets. And women of child-bearing age are vaccinated against tetanus, which can strike mother and newborn children if birthing conditions are not hygienic. Logistically, programmes inside Somalia are very expensive but it is very important that we keep our promises to those communities, and that we come every six months with the Child Health Days, says UNICEF Somalias Chief of Health and Nutrition, Dr. Suraya Dalil. We are well funded for the first round that is going on now, but for the subsequent rounds, we are facing financial shortages.To read the full story, visit http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/somalia_49047.html

• Release Date

  Apr 2, 2009

• Runtime

  02:17