Measles vaccinations start in Mellit, North Darfur

The locality of Mellit in North Darfur has launched the measles vaccination campaign, which will continue until next Tuesday. The campaign will target 87,783 boys and girls in villages, nomadic settlements and camps in the two areas of Mellit and Sayah.

More than two hundred health and technical cadres and volunteers will take part in the vaccination campaign. The campaign's targeted age group is all children between six months up to fifteen years old. The under-15-years age group has the highest percentage of reported cases, according to Sudan's Ministry of Health.

The immunisation director of Mellit locality has announced the continuation of the vaccination campaign of children for a period of ten days. The vaccinations can be received across the fixed mobile and temporary vaccination centres, and some institutions such as hospitals, kindergartens and the facilities of districts and schools.

The Sudanese Ministry of Health said that vaccination campaigns should not only cover affected localities. It reported that as of 24 May, the total number of deaths from measles in 2015 has risen to 38. In last week's news bulletin by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the Ministry of Health confirmed 2,511 cases in Sudan.