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Belgium Gives $2 Million to Fight Measles

UN Integrated Regional Information Networks

June 13, 2003
Posted to the web June 13, 2003

Kinshasa

The Belgian aid agency, Cooperation Belge, has donated US $2 million towards a measles vaccination campaign being run by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), in Equateur Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the agency said on Thursday.

The spokeswoman for Cooperation Belge, Joyce Brandful, said that 12 solar-powered fridges had already been set up in five health zones in the north of the province, and were being used to preserve the vaccinations.

The vaccination campaign is part of a UNICEF project started in July 2002 to provide urgent medical support to the population in Mongala District, northern Equateur, supported by $500,000 from Belgium.

UNICEF reported that part of the new Belgian donation would be used to buy milk for feeding centres and to finance the organising of nutritional teams. Some of the money would also be used to buy medical equipment and medicines for health centres in 10 health zones.

UNICEF said that in conjunction with the NGO CARITAS, it had also provided essential items such as matresses, mosquito nets, lamps and chlorine worth $52,600 to health centres and five general reference hospitals.