Takoradi, May 10, GNA - Some 564,276 children were immunized during the first round of the National Immunization Exercise in March this year in the Western Region. Mr Peter Ofori Tweneboah, the Regional Coordinator of the Expanded Programmed on Immunization, announced at a press briefing at Takoradi on Tuesday.

He said the number of children vaccinated represented 10.4 per cent increase over a target of 542,511 children. Mr Tweneboah said the increase in the immunization coverage was due to acceptance of the exercise, probably vaccination of children over five years and the inclusion of Ivorian children refugees. He said the assessment indicated 98 per cent coverage, meaning two per cent of children were not immunized. He said no major refusals against immunization were encountered and no reactions were recorded during the campaign.

Mr Tweneboah said key messages for caregivers were properly disseminated by volunteers but the Ivorian crisis placed extra burden on volunteers in border communities. He said the second round of the National Immunization Exercise would take place from May 9-14 under the theme: 93Don't lose your child to Anaemia or Polio, Act Now".

He said in addition to Polio immunization, Vitamin A Supplementation and de-worming tablets would be administered to children. Growth monitoring and birth registration forms part of the activities for the second round, he said.

Mr Tweneboah said the exercise also forms part of the celebration of the Child Health Promotion Week and the Second Africa Vaccination Week.

He said the second round was aimed at addressing the unacceptably high rates of morbidity and mortality among children under five, low coverage of interventions and the need to scale up to reach MDG 4 target, which could be achieved if all children were vaccinated before one year.

Mr Tweneboah said the exercise is also to help tackle the high rate of malnutrition and anaemia among children. He said many children were getting overweight and if this was not brought under control the country would have many obese children. All houses visited by volunteers would be marked as in the first round, Mr Tweneboah added. 10 May 11