Monday, March 20, 2006

Meningitis outbreak in Sudan incl Hamadyia IDP camp, Zalinger, West Darfur

A vaccination campaign against meningitis will start this week in western Sudan following the confirmation of an outbreak in Hamadyia camp for internally displaced persons in Zalinger, West Darfur, said the UN World Health Organization (WHO) on Sunday.

A national task force under the chairmanship of the Federal Ministry of Health together with WHO, UNICEF and NGOs has been established after reports of outbreaks of meningococcal meningitis in the country. As of 16 March, 526 cases with 23 deaths have been reported across the country. The epidemic thresholds in four States (Blue Nile, Gedaref, Kassala and South Kordofan) have, so far, been crossed. Full story by WHO at ReliefWeb 19 March 2006.

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