Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Mass Diphtheria Vaccination Campaign Set to Begin in Yemen

by Lisa Schlein

   GENEVA --

   In Yemen, the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners will
   kick-off a long-awaited mass vaccination campaign next week to contain
   the continued spread of diphtheria.

   The WHO says 1.4 million people in 41 districts that have reported
   diphtheria cases during the last month will be vaccinated against the
   potentially fatal disease. It says the mass campaign will target
   children and adolescents up to the age of 15.

   The latest official count of suspected cases of diphtheria in Yemen
   stands at 914, including 59 deaths. WHO says this represents a
   significant drop in the fatality rate from 10 percent to 6.5 percent in
   the space of a few weeks.

   WHO representative for Yemen, Nevio Zagaria, says it is unclear whether
   the epidemic has peaked. But, he notes there has been a steep decline
   in the number of cases in the most severely affected governorate of
   Ibb.

   Speaking by telephone from the Yemeni capital Sana'a, he said the
   reduction in new cases is due in large part to the deployment of
   rapid-response teams to identify people who have fallen ill with
   diphtheria and those who have come in contact with them.

   "So, this, together with some vaccinations that have been conducted in
   the under-seven population in Ibb in November and December can explain
   the reduction of the new cases and the new admissions in Ibb. But, the
   overall [the] epidemic is still spreading to other districts and we
   cannot say that it is over," Zagaria said.

   The U.N. children's fund UNICEF took advantage of Saudi Arabia's
   partial lifting of a blockade of Yemen's air and seaports on December
   20 to import six million doses of essential vaccines against
   preventable diseases, including diphtheria.

   Since then, however, aid agencies had been frustrated in efforts to
   mount a mass diphtheria vaccination campaign because they did not get
   an immediate go-ahead from Yemeni health authorities.