Harare — Twenty-two people, mainly children below the age of five years, have died of measles in Makoni District of Manicaland Province since the beginning of this month.

The 22, according to health officials, had never been vaccinated.

The district has now started an immunisation campaign in the area.

The Ministry of Health and Child Welfare confirmed the deaths and immediately started a campaign targeted at children between nine months and 14 years of age.

Addressing a Press conference in Harare yesterday, Health and Child Welfare Minister Henry Madzorera said 90 people have since been confirmed to have been affected by the highly contagious viral respiratory infection countrywide, while those treated of suspected measles numbered over 350 over the last 12 months.

Of the positive cases, more than 50 percent are children below the age of five years while 95 percent of the cases had never been vaccinated before.

"This is an unwarranted loss of lives given the fact that measles is a preventable disease.

"In Zimbabwe, outbreaks of measles were rare because of sustained high vaccination coverage among all children. It is therefore important for parents to realise that vaccinating their children protects the individual children from disease and/or its complications," Dr Madzorera said.

Dr Madzorera urged parents to not only take their children for vaccination, but also to encourage other community members to vaccinate their children.

"The message therefore is vaccinating your child is not enough protection, encourage and ensure that other children around yours are also vaccinated," he said.

According to the Public Health Act, children are vaccinated from measles at nine months of age.

However, most mothers had become lax in getting their children immunised, while others cited religious beliefs.

Most members of apostolic sects are reluctant to immunise their children.

To date, 15 districts have been affected and these include Zvishavane, Harare, Buhera Bulawayo, Gokwe South, Makoni, Marondera, Bubi, Gutu, Insiza, Kwekwe, Makonde, Mutare, Chegutu and Chipinge.

Measles is considered an outbreak when there is a cluster of five or more suspected cases or where there are at least three confirmed positive cases in a district or health facility within a month.

Measles causes high fever, skin rash, running nose, watery eyes and a cough.

The disease mainly affects children under the age of five.

In unvaccinated children, measles can cause severe diarrhoea leading to dehydration, blindness to those with inadequate vitamin A, inflammation of the middle ear, brain damage, and even death due to pneumonia.

Worldwide, vaccination has led to the elimination of measles in the WHO region of America, while global measles mortality has decreased by 74 percent from 750 000 in 2000 to 197 000 deaths in 2007.

According to WHO, the cost of immunising a child is between US$20-US$40. However, in Zimbabwe and other developing countries immunisation is free at all public institutions.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry has warned Zimbabweans to continue taking necessary precautions to prevent attacks of cholera, swine flu and measles.

"Even though there have been no new cholera cases reported for the past three weeks, we recommend that people continue taking the necessary precautions to prevent attacks of cholera," the minister said.

These precautions include washing hands with soap or ash before and after meals, eating hot food, boiling or chlorinating drinking water, washing fruits before eating and disposing waste appropriately.