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Kenya target to deworm over 5 million children in primary sc

  1. Posted on Thursday 11 October 2012 - 09:09
    Alal
    Image of Alal
    Kenya target to deworm over 5 million children in primary schools.

    BY MAURICE ALAL,reporting from Kisumu Kenya

    A total over 60,000 children between the ages of two and 14 in primary
    schools in Suba District are targeted to be dewormed by October 31
    this year, area District Education Officer (DEO), Joseph Olepardia has
    said.

    The Education officer said the program is funded by the World Health
    Organization (WHO) among other donors. Olepardia said the exercise
    will be implemented by the Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation,
    and that of Education across the country.

    It is reported that the deworming program targets at least 5 million
    children across the country to reduce parasitic infection to pupils.

    However, Olepardia further revealed that Suba district has 107 public
    and 103 private primary schools which the deworming exercise will be
    undertaken with the help of the trained teachers to administer the
    drug.

    According to Parasitological survey carried out in Nyanza, Rift Valley
    and parts of Western regions indicates that parasitic load is high
    among the children of school going hence requires a mass drug
    administration as per WHO recommendation.

    "The worms suck either blood or nutrients that are needed for
    development of the brain cells," reports showed. To undertake the
    program effectively, the two ministries have rolled out a training
    exercise for teachers countrywide ahead of the national deworming day
    to be held on October 31,2012.

    The two trained teachers per schools will in turn train other teachers
    to help in undertaking the administration of the drug to the pupils.
    However health experts said that worm related ailments contributed at
    least 25% of the absenteeism among school going children.

    They further said that at least 13 % of the children in Kenya were
    likely to be literate due to worms. This can be linked to the low
    literacy level in areas where the spreed of these worms is rampant.

    The DEO called upon parents and children to embrace the anticipated
    deworming exercise to curb the spreed of worms in the region.

    END

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