Bulenga, U/W, April 21, GNA- Mr Adams Mahama Issahaku, Wa East District Chief Executive, has appealed to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and partner agencies to provide remote rural communities in the Upper West Region with motorized tricycles.

He explained that this would help in conveying women in labour and critically ill children to health facilities for medical attention. Mr. Issahaku expressed regret that women in labour and critically ill children were transported to health facilities on bicycles, donkey drawn carts and pushed trucks as a result of lack of effective transport in the communities.

He was speaking at a ceremony at Bulenga in the Wa East District on Friday, at which 300 bicycles, Wellington boots and first aid kits donated by UNICEF, were presented to 300

community-based volunteers to help in the child survival education. Mr. Issahaku said indecision and delays in sending sick children to health facilities were some of the cause of infant mortality in the district.

The Region has the highest under five-mortality rate, which is 208 deaths per 1000 live births as against the national figure of 104 deaths per 1000 live births.

Mr Joseph Bolibie, Wa East District Director of Health Services, said the trained volunteers were expected to assist staff of the Services in its implementation of the UNICEF sponsored community integrated management of childhood illnesses, C-IMCI programme. He said the programme sought to improve child survival and development at household and community levels and therefore asked the people and other stakeholders collaborate efforts and support the programme to yield the desired results.

Mr Bolibie said about 75 per cent of deaths among children were preventable through the use of insecticide treated bed nets. Mr Seidu Mohamed Saani, Assembly Member for Bulenga, appealed to the Ministry of Health to upgrade the Bulenga Clinic into a hospital in view of the large area it caters for.