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BORNO: Measles outbreak kills 13 kids, UNICEF moves in

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BORNO: Measles outbreak kills 13 kids, UNICEF moves in

The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has confirmed the death of 13 children to Measles.

The agency has also revealed plans to begin the vaccination of 1.7million children that may be vulnerable to the disease in the state.

This was contained in a statement on Wednesday by a Communication Specialist with the agency, Eva Hinds.

The campaign which would run from March 21-25, 2019 would cover children aged 6 months to 10 years.

The statement explains that a 2017 Demographic Health Survey in Nigeria shows that only 65 per cent of eligible Nigerian children receive their first dose of measles vaccine every year.

Read also: Nigeria requires $55bn annually to meet UN’s SDGs

It further attributed the death of the children in Borno State to the low coverage.

The statement also added that there was ongoing plans to collaborate with Nigerian Government to tackle the growing cases of the disease.

The statement read in part, “Following a growing number of reported cases of measles, the Government of Nigeria, in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund and World Health Organisation, will conduct a vaccination campaign in Borno to protect 1.7m million children aged 6 months to 10 years against measles.”

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