A nationwide anti-measle campaign has  been scheduled for November 27 to December 3, with 50,000 children targeted in the Kanifing Municipality alone. This figure represents 20 per cent of the targeted children who are six months to five years.

Dawda Sowe, Communications Officer for the Expansion Programme for Immunisation, at the Department of State for Health and Social Welfare, confirmed this statistic during a sensitisation programme for the ward councillors, staff of KMC, and Akalolu, on Thursday, at the KMC hall.

Mr Sowe said the campaign seeks to develop on the national coverage and reinforce the routine immunisation to protect children from vitamin A deficiency, worm infestation and measle morbidity and mortality.

He stressed that the aim of the immunisation, is to eliminate measle in the country, adding that this is one of the major health problems in the country.

He said the immunisation teams will be deployed at various centres, adding that they will also visit nursery schools and public places as part of the strategies.

He implored parents to effectively take part in the exercise to enable them register success in the campaign. "We want to get a minimum of  95% coverage of children during the campaign," he said.

Yankuba Colley, acting Mayor of KMC, said the large turnout of the people to the meeting has shown that the Council is committed to the health and welfare of its people. However, he urged the participants to take the programme seriously.

Bakary Jallow, representative of the National Nutrition Agency, said his agency is interested in the nutritional status of children, maintaining that this is why they have  incorporated vitamin A in the campaign. Mr Jallow revealed that studies have shown that a lot of people are affected by vitamin A deficiency, despite the availability of nutritious food in the country.

 He said children under 5 years are the must vulnerable group, noting that adequate vitamin A reduces the severity of any disease that enters the body, keep the eyes healthy, ensures rapid growth and development, and develop tissues during pregnancy. He added that deworming helps in child's growth and learning ability.

Pa Ousman Manneh, who represented UNICEF Country Office, said children have the right to immunisation. Mr Manneh called on the Alkalolu to disseminate the information to their people, as their role is crucial in the campaign.

Momodou Gassama, Communications Officer of the WHO Country Office, described measle as a killer disease, saying that the cooperation of everybody is needed to combat it. Noting that it is the mandate of the WHO to make sure that every human being is healthy, Mr Gassama informed the gathering that The Gambia has the best immunisation.