APOSTOLIC sects, mainly in Manicaland province are reportedly responding well to government pleas to have their children vaccinated for diseases such as measles and polio, among others.
The province became a measles hotspot after 3 291 confirmed measles cases were reported from April to October, while 349 children succumbed to the disease.
The apostolic sects were the major victims owing to their anti-medicine doctrines.
Acting provincial medical director Munyaradzi Mukudzunga last Friday told NewsDay during a tour of projects supported by ChinaAid and the United Nations Population Fund that apostolic sect members were responding well to vaccination calls.
“The first outbreak came from Mutasa, and on the vaccination campaigns we had to bend the rules to ensure our clients’ needs were met. One of the things we have learnt is to listen to them,” Mukudzunga said.
“444 413 children below the age of 15 were vaccinated in Mutasa, Buhera, Chimanimani, Mutare and Nyanga districts, which were the most severely affected. This accounted for 95% of the targeted population. For Chipinge, Mutare city and Makoni districts, 118 230 children under the age of five were vaccinated, representing 83,1% of the targeted number.”
Health officials said Zimbabwe is now out of danger.
The measles outbreak claimed over 700 lives and affected thousands of children, with critics blaming the country’s weak health system for the disaster.
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