UN agencies to help de-worm schoolchildren

Helping countries to rid children of intestinal parasites is the focus of two consecutive workshops in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, involving representatives of 13 African nations, the World Food Programme (WFP), World Health Organization (WHO) and World Bank. The workshops aim to help governments set up worm disinfection projects in tandem with school-feeding activities. Under these projects, children who attend schools where WFP has set up canteens would receive tablets that would disinfect them of worms, which inhibit their growth and ability to learn. The first workshop, which involved Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique and Niger, ended on Saturday. Chad, Guinea, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal are participating in the second, which also began on Saturday. During each workshop, the agencies inform the delegates of the purpose and benefits of the Partners for Parasite Control (PPC) project and help them design proposals for their respective countries. Benefits of "de-worming" include improved health and better productivity in school, especially in terms of concentration and memory. Over the years, studies have shown that worm infestation is a public health concern in less-developed countries. The three agencies decided to extend to Africa a 1998-2000 pilot programme they ran in Nepal because of the programme's results and the comparable climatic and socio-economic factors. "Nepal was a successful study case," WHO's Mirella Genequand told IRIN. The project reduced that country's infestation rate from 71 percent to around 50 percent. The drug used, Albendazole or Mebendazole, is cheap and effective. It would be administered twice a year to the children. "With 10 cents a year, we have positive results," Gianpietro Bordignon, senior programme advisor at WFP's West Africa regional office, told IRIN. However, both officials agreed that the initiative was just one step in improving the health of children and of the population. Eventually, water, sanitation, food, personal hygiene and health habits will also have to be improved, they said. Up to US $50,000 is available for each country that decides to implement the project.