Seven women die of measles in Zamzam camp, North Darfur

Measles is rapidly spreading among adults in the densely populated Zamzam camp for the displaced, near El Fasher, capital of North Darfur.

“More and more adults are stricken, as measles are being transmitted from the children in the camp,” an activist told Radio Dabanga from the camp. “During the past weeks, seven women, three of them breast-feeding, died of the disease.”

He appealed via Radio Dabanga to all the displaced in Zamzam to have their children vaccinated at the various health centres in the camp that hosts more than 150,000 displaced.

Last April, Sudanese Ministry of Health, in cooperation with Unicef and national partners launched a massive campaign to immunise 7.9 million children, aged six months to 15 years, against the life-threatening disease. 

In one of the worst measles outbreaks in Sudan’s recent history that began in the end of 2014, there have been 1,730 confirmed cases, 3,175 suspected cases and 22 fatalities, Unicef stated in a news note on 23 April. 

The UN World Health Organisation (WHO) and Unicef will support the Health Ministry to conduct a second response vaccination campaign, targeting about 1.85 million children between six months and 15 years of age, in 22 localities in North, South, East and Central Darfur states. The organisations recommended that the vaccination campaigns should cover all states, and not only affected localities, and should ideally cover the whole country.