Laos and WHO in partnership to eliminate snail fever among children
PHNOM PENH: The World Health Organisation (WHO) and Lao Health Ministry will spend RM5 million (US$1.18 million) to eliminate the parasitic disease schistosomiasis that has been affecting thousands of children in the landlocked country.
Authorities will implement several measures over the next two years to interrupt schistosomiasis transmission to achieve zero cases of new locally transmitted infections in snails, animals, and humans, according to a WHO Laos media release.
Schistosomiasis, or snail fever, is transmitted by parasitic worm-infected snails living in contaminated water.
Symptoms of the tropical disease include stomach pain, enlarged liver, and blood in the urine or stool. Left unchecked, it can even cause infertility or bladder cancer, said WHO.
The activities will be jointly funded by the China Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund (GDF) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
"Schistosomiasis has been a persistent challenge for many years. Despite our efforts to prevent transmission and eliminate schistosomiasis, the disease continues to affect thousands, especially children.
"This new funding and collaboration will enhance our capacity and enable us to intensify our control measures and move closer to elimination,' said Lao Health Minister Dr Bounfeng Phoummalaysith.
According to WHO, schistosomiasis impacts almost 240 million people worldwide.
In Laos, the disease affects about 120,000 people in Champasack Province's Khong and Mounlapamok districts across 202 villages. Most school-aged children are at risk, said the statement.
China's GDF will provide RM2.93 million (US$680,263) and SDC will channel RM2.16 million (US$500,590) for the project.
"Schistosomiasis is an unwelcome health risk causing a range of tragic health impacts - one that we are close to eliminating. Sustained investment and commitment have meant that less than one per cent of people living in high-risk locations are infected.
"But with children and adults risking infection through poor hygiene, farming, and outdoor and recreational activities, the risk to health and further transmission remains,' read the WHO statement, citing its representative in Laos, Dr Tim Armstrong. - Bernama
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
8 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Israeli fire kills 41 in Gaza, many near an aid site, medics say
CAIRO: Israeli gunfire and airstrikes killed at least 41 Palestinians in Gaza today, most of them at an aid site operated by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in the centre of the coastal territory, local health officials said. Medical officials at Shifa and Al-Quds Hospitals said at least 25 people were killed by Israeli gunfire as they approached the aid site near the former settlement of Netzarim, and dozens were wounded. The Israeli military said its forces fired warning shots overnight toward suspects who were advancing while posing a threat to the troops in the area of the Netzarim Corridor. "This is despite warnings that the area is an active combat zone. The IDF is aware of reports regarding individuals injured; the details are under review," it added. Later today, health officials at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip said at least six people were killed by Israeli gunfire as they approached another GHF site in Rafah further south, taking Wednesday's death toll to at least 41. A total of 163 people had already been killed and more than 1,000 wounded trying to reach the handful of aid sites operated by the foundation since it began work two weeks ago after a three-month blockade, according to Gaza's health ministry. The United Nations has condemned the killings. It said the blockade brought the Palestinian enclave to the brink of famine and that food supplies remain critically low. The foundation said earlier it was unaware of today's incident but that it is working closely with Israeli authorities to ensure safe passage routes are maintained, and that it is essential for Palestinians to closely follow instructions. "Ultimately, the solution is more aid, which will create more certainty and less urgency among the population," it said by email in response to Reuters questions. "There is not yet enough food to feed everyone in need in Gaza. Our current focus is to feed as many people as is safely possible within the constraints of a highly volatile environment." The U.N. and other aid groups have refused to supply aid via the foundation, which uses private contractors with Israeli military backup in what they say is a breach of humanitarian standards. Gaza health officials said 10 other people were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis in the south of the enclave. On Tuesday, when Gaza health officials said 17 people were killed near another GHF aid site in Rafah in southern Gaza, the army said it fired warning shots to distance "suspects" who were approaching the troops and posed a threat. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday there had been "significant progress" in efforts to secure the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza, but that it was "too soon" to raise hopes that a deal would be reached. Despite efforts by the United States, Egypt, and Qatar to restore a ceasefire in Gaza, neither Israel nor Hamas has shown willingness to back down on core demands, with each side blaming the other for the failure to reach a deal. Two Hamas sources told Reuters they did not know about any new ceasefire offers. The war erupted after Hamas-led fighters took 251 hostages and killed 1,200 people, most of them civilians, on October 7, 2023, Israel's single deadliest day.
The Sun
13 hours ago
- The Sun
Gaza rescuers say Israel fire near aid centre kills 31
GAZA CITY: The Gaza civil defence agency said Israeli forces opened fire on people waiting to enter a US-backed food distribution centre on Wednesday, killing 31 and wounding 'about 200'. 'We transported at least 31 martyrs and about 200 wounded as a result of Israeli tank and drone fire on thousands of citizens... on their way to receive food from the American aid centre,' civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP. The Israeli army did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment. Restrictions imposed on media in the Gaza Strip and the difficulties of access on the ground mean AFP is not able to independently verify the death tolls announced by the civil defence agency. Bassal said thousands of Palestinians had been gathering since 2 am (2300 GMT Tuesday) in the hope of reaching the US and Israeli-backed food distribution centre. 'Israeli tanks fired several times, then at around 5:30 am intensified their fire, coinciding with heavy fire from drones targeting civilians,' he said. There have been a series of deadly shootings since the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) first opened aid distribution points in the Palestinian territory on May 27, as Israel faced mounting international condemnation over the humanitarian conditions.
Free Malaysia Today
14 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
WHO says Gaza's Al-Amal hospital ‘virtually out of service'
Israeli soldiers take position at Gaza's European Hospital, claiming Hamas militants used a tunnel beneath the facility for operations. (AP pic) GAZA : The Al-Amal Hospital in Gaza, one of the few still operating in the Palestinian territory, is now 'virtually out of service' due to intense military activity, the head of the WHO said Monday. 'Access to the hospital is obstructed, preventing new patients from reaching care, and leading to more preventable deaths,' the World Health Organization's director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus posted on X. Tedros said two emergency medical teams – one local, the other international – 'are still doing their best to serve the remaining patients with the limited medical supplies left on the premises.' 'With the closure of Al-Amal, Nasser Medical Complex is now the only remaining hospital with an intensive care unit in Khan Younis,' he said. The WHO said June 5 that al-Nasser and Al-Amal hospitals were unable to fully treat the wounded that continue to pour in because of serious shortages of medicines and medical supplies after two months of total blockade. Israeli authorities have recently allowed in some humanitarian aid, but way less than what is needed. Nearly 20 months of relentless war, triggered by Hamas' Oct 7, 2023 attacks on Israel, has created one of the most serious humanitarian crises in the world, with civilians exhausted by bombardments, forced displacement and hunger.
