A child receiving her Vitamin A supplements. [Photo/ the-star.co.ke]
Mombasa County has been ranked top in administering Vitamin A to children in a bid to protect them from various illnesses.The county has been carrying out the exercise yearly in the months of May and October, thus reaching 76 percent of children aged between six months and five years who require the supplements.Speaking on Tuesday at the Mikindani Catholic Nursery School when the second phase of the exercise came to an end, Esha Bakari a nutritionist said Vitamin A supplements reduce child mortality rates by up to 23 percent.“These supplements increase child survival as well as hemoglobin concentration,” she said.Bakari said the supplements also help in boosting children’s’ immune systems and preventing the occurrence of frequent diseases in the child’s body.“76 percent of children countrywide suffer Vitamin A deficiency and we are here to prevent this. Mombasa has already made steps that have had a positive impact on our children’s health,” said Bakari.The annual ‘Malezi Bora Campaign’ has been going on for the last three years and is being conducted by partners in the health sector including UNICEF, European Union, Funded Kenya AIDS NGO’s consortium CANCO, Grace Africa, the Kenya Red Cross Society among others.Bakari urged other stakeholders including parents, teachers and the community to work closely with community health workers to ensure children between the ages of six months and five years receive the supplements.The next phase of the campaign will be launched in May 2018.