Tarkwa, May 18, GNA - The Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipal Health Directorate exceeded its target for this year's polio and anaemia campaign programme which was undertaken between May 9 and May 14. The municipality targeted 30,386 children below the age of zero and five years but recorded 32,889 in its nine sub district which represented 108%.

The Municipal Nutrition Officer, The Reverend Joseph Dwomoh, said the immunization, which fell within the child health promotion week, was successful compared to previous ones. He said mothers showed massive interest and made their children readily available to the 226 volunteers. Rev Dwomoh said the health directorate included anaemia because it had become a major problem in the Tarkwa Nsueam Municipality as well as the country at large.

In addition, he said, children between six to 59 months were given vitamin A supplement while those between the ages of two to five years were given de-wormed. He said children between 0-59 months were immunized against polio. Rev Dwomoh said anaemia was high among women and children below five years seven out of every 10 pregnant women have anaemia while six out of 10 women of child bearing age also have anaemia. He said in 2009, 40 anaemia cases were recorded among pregnant women as against 61 in 2010 in the municipality.

For children in 2009, 473 cases was recorded below the age of 5 years in which 18 died while in 2010 the number shot up to 778 and 26 deaths were recorded.