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Measles outbreak reported in Zanzibar

Electron microscope image of the virus responsible for measles Flickr Creative Commons/Sanofi Pasteur
    STONE TOWN

    The first measles outbreak in five years on Zanzibar’s main island has prompted health officials to mount a two-day emergency immunization of 10,000 children under five.



    Most of the 76 cases recorded occurred over the past two weeks, said Health Minister Malik Abdallah Juma.

    "We have had no deaths so far, and we managed to treat 62 children; the remaining 14 are still in hospital under close [observation] by doctors,” he said.



    Abdulhamid Ameir Salum, the manager of Zanzibar's Expanded Programme on Immunization, said the outbreak was partly due to delays in vaccine delivery caused by high global demand as well as to parents’ reluctance to bring their children to health centres for immunization.



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    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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