(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Qatar Red Crescent (QRC) has announced that it recently completed the supervision of the eighth polio vaccination campaign in Syria, to be added to the previous seven campaigns co-implemented successfully with the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef), World Health Organisation and other local and global humanitarian organisations, in the face of difficulties and insecurity.
Over 10 days, the eighth campaign was carried out in seven Syrian governorates, four of which (Aleppo, Latakia, Idlib and Hama, as well as their countryside parts) were supervised by QRC.
QRC's mission in Gaziantep, Turkey, held an intensive training course for 114 supervisors on the mission's premises and inside Syria to improve their supervisory, planning, follow-up and assessment skills. Then, they were aligned across the four governorates to accompany the vaccinators.
According to the initial results, the total number of vaccinated children stood at 768,254, including 491,340 in Aleppo, 241,427 in Idlib, 6,614 in Latakia and 28,873 in Hama.
The process comprises three phases: pre-campaign, wherein, over two days, the supervisors visited the chief centres to ensure that the centres and equipment are in place; during campaign € over six days, QRC supervisors examined vaccine samples, checked storage conditions for inconveniences and accompanied vaccinator teams to assess their performance at health centres and households and take notes; and post-campaign € over two days, the results were analysed for lessons learnt, which would be considered in future campaigns.
QRC secretary-general Saleh bin Ali al-Mohannadi said: "We have completed the eighth campaign to immunise the Syrian children against polio as part of our attempts to improve the living conditions of our Syrian brothers within and outside Syria, cater to their basic needs and protect the next generation against physical impairment. A few oral vaccine drops can create a productive citizen who serves his homeland."
Al-Mohannadi expressed happiness at the fruitful co-operation with Unicef over the past years, which culminated in a five-year MoU to serve as a general framework for their systematically co-ordinated relations through exchange of experience, co-operation in projects and other forms of joint action.
QRC is set to supervise the ninth campaign, to be launched early in April, under the $10mn polio vaccination project executed by Unicef and several regional and global organisations, including QRC, with a view to alleviate the severe health conditions suffered by 4.5mn Syrian children directly affected by the four-year crisis.
Signed by al-Mohannadi and Dr Ibrahim al-Ziq, Unicef Gulf Area representative, the agreement covers all humanitarian development, protection and response actions for the benefit of women and children, including but not limited to the lives, survival and development of young children; gender equality in basic education; HIV/AIDS in children; protection against, prevention of and response to all forms of violence, exploitation and abuse; and promotion of applicable policy compliance and partnership building for children's rights protection.
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