DOH, WHO, UNICEF to conduct nationwide measles campaign starting October 26

The Department of Health, supported by WHO and UNICEF, will conduct the nationwide measles and polio supplemental immunization campaign starting October 26 this year. In the Philippines, an estimated 2.4M children under the age of five are susceptible for measles. Measles or tigdas is one of the most contagious diseases in the world. Among those who are not immune, up to 9 out of 10 people exposed to the measles virus will contract the disease.

The nationwide Measles Rubella-Oral Polio Vaccine Supplemental Immunization campaign will be rolled out in two phases. Phase 1 will be conducted from 26 October to 25 November 2020 in Mindanao Regions, CAR, I, II, IV-B and V. Phase 2 will be conducted in February 2021 in Visayas Regions, NCR, III and IV-A. DOH is conducting the campaign for children under five years old—around 9.4M children for the measles-rubella vaccine and 6.9M children for the oral polio vaccine.

World Vision urges the world to focus on those who are invisible and most at risk from COVID-19 pandemic

World Vision in the Philippines has conducted awareness campaigns on COVID-19 in various rural areas where many families have limited means to get information.

A united global effort is needed to help prevent COVID-19 from having a massive destructive impact on the lives of child refugees, migrants and the very poor, warns aid agency World Vision, as a pandemic is declared by the WHO (World Health Organization).

World Vision health specialists are urging governments not just to focus on the impact of the virus on its own citizens, businesses, travel and trade, but to rally to support war-torn and poverty-affected countries where coronavirus outbreaks will potentially cause misery.