Herald Reporters

GOVERNMENT yesterday launched a new vaccine and a revised child health card for children under five years as the state intensifies the fight against child mortality and morbidity.

The pneumococcal conjugate vaccine is meant to reduce the effects of pneumonia, meningitis and the presence of bacteria in children’s blood.
Officially launching the two facilities yesterday, Health and Child Welfare Minister Douglas Mombeshora, said Government was committed to reduce the child mortality rate from high levels through strategic interventions.
He said child health was at the core of the millennium development goals hence Government’s intervention to make sure the MDGs were met.

“The under-five mortality rate according to the Zimbabwe Demographic and Health Survey of 2010-11 is 84 deaths per 1 000 live births,” Dr Mombeshora said.
“The Multiple Indicator Monitoring Survey of 2009 estimates under-five mortality rate at 94 deaths per 1 000 live births and this figure is unacceptably high, bearing in mind that the aim is to reduce this to 34 deaths out of every 1 000 live births by 2015.”

He said most children were dying from preventable diseases hence Government had embraced the pneumococcal vaccine to prevent children dying from pneumonia and meningitis.
“In addition to immunisation children can be protected from pneumonia through exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life, good nutrition, hand washing

with soap and reduction of overcrowding,” Dr Mombeshora said.
He said results of the National Nutrition Survey of 2010 showed that over 33 percent of children in Zimbabwe were stunted. Dr Mombeshora said Government was going to take practical actions to improve child survival, growth and development in the country. Some of the interventions include abolition of user fees for pregnant women and children under the age of five who seek medical care at Government hospitals.

Government, he said, would also ensure that a special five-year financing period from 2010-2015 was actualised to ensure urgent action on tackling causes of child and maternal mortality.

Dr Mombeshora said the revised child health card was an important tool for recording and monitoring and delivering primary health care for child survival, growth and development in a simple, integrated manner.

“By using this revised card, the Government of Zimbabwe will ensure that all vital preventive interventions like exclusive breastfeeding, immunisations and PMTCT remain the core of our primary care approach and are delivered according to the latest recommendations.
“I am therefore confident that by using this revised card, the country will be able to realise the long standing ambition to attain the MDG Four on reducing child mortality,” Dr Mombeshora said.

World Health Organisation representative in Zimbabwe, Dr Custodia Mandlhate said there was need for the Government to go an extra mile in fighting child killer diseases.

“I am reliably informed that more efforts are being put in place to introduce next year the Rotavirus vaccine which will also contribute immensely to the child mortality reduction,” Dr Mandlhate said.