Maputo — The Mozambican health authorities on Monday, with the support of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other partners, launched the second phase of "National Child Health Week", with the goal of vaccinating 3.5 million children under the age of five against measles, and giving them all Vitamin A supplements.

In addition, 2.7 million children will be dewormed, during the week. Mosquito nets impregnated with long lasting insecticide will be distributed for over 700,000 children in the country's most populous province, Nampula.

The first phase was held from 31 Match to 4 April, and in that period over 2.8 million children received vitamin A supplements, and more than 1.9 children were dewormed. In addition 2.4 million children were checked for malnutrition, and in those parts of the country noted for iodine deficiency (Niassa, Nampula, Tete and Zambezia provinces), over 420,000 children received iodine supplements.

Mozambique is well on the way to eliminating measles. A measles vaccination campaign in 2005 led to a 97 per cent reduction in measles cases between 2004 and 2007. Nonetheless, the health authorities fear that the routine vaccinations do not reach enough children to break definitively the chain of transmission of the measles virus. Hence the decision to put measles vaccination at the top of this week's activities.

The latest data suggest that a shocking 69 per cent of Mozambican children suffer from vitamin A deficiency. This can lower resistance to the measles virus, as well as to diarrhea and acute respiratory infections. It also stunts growth and impairs vision. The vitamin supplement, and the removal of parasites through deworming can both have significant impacts on child survival rates.

The purpose of this initiative is described as "to accelerate nationally progress in reducing neonatal and infant mortality rates, and to promote family health in Mozambique through multi-sector interventions, thus contributing towards achieving the targets of the Millennium Development Goals".

One of these Goals, adopted by the United Nations at the Millennium Summit in 2000, is to cut the mortality rate among under fives by two thirds between 1990 and 2015.

The campaign started smoothly in most of the country, but in the district of Namacurra, in the central province of Zambezia, a group of civil servants were arrested for stealing 200,000 meticais (about 8,300 US dollars) intended for the campaign. The number of arrests made was not clear.

According to a report in Tuesday's issue of the Maputo daily "Noticias", this was not allowed to derail the campaign in Namacurra. The Zambezia Provincial Health Directorate replaced the stolen money, and the provincial chief doctor, Joana Nachaque, told reporters, the vaccinations started on time.