At least 8,000 children between the ages of six months and five years have received vitamin A supplements in a health campaign aimed at eradicating vitamin deficiency in southwestern Congo.

"Since June 2005 we have administered the vitamin in the form of capsules as part of our intervention programme," said Charles Ngoussa, the head of local health NGO Dynamisation des Initiatives Locales, which is based in Sibiti, the main town in Lékoumou.

Vitamin A boosts the body's immunity, increasing children's resistance to infections. It stimulates mental and physical growth through the synthesis of proteins. The vitamin is also important in improving vision, preventing eye infections and in the production of red blood cells. Vitamin A supplements contribute to the reduction of mortality from diseases such as diarrhoea and measles.
 
Vitamin A deficiency leads to an increase in infectious and parasitic diseases, stunted mental and physical development, declining vision [night blindness] and ultimately blindness, as well as increasing the likelihood of developing anaemia due a reduction in red blood cells.

Among the children who received the vitamin supplements in the ongoing campaign were 2,000 children from indigenous communities (‘Pygmies’), Ngoussa said.

He said these children were the most vulnerable, adding: "If in general the situation of the Congolese children is of concern to us, then that of the pygmy children is even of greater concern as can be seen in the precarious way in which the indigenous communities live."

The nutritional status of children under five remains of major concern in Congo, due to the prevalence of malnutrition. Although there are no official statistics, children from the rural areas are the most affected by malnutrition.

According to Ngoussa, different forms of malnutrition are exacerbated by poverty, which prevents the population from accessing medical care. At least 50.7 percent of the Congolese population live below the poverty line (less than US$1 a day), according to a household survey conducted by the World Bank in 2005.

The UN Children's Fund says between 200 and 300 million pre-school children in developing countries are at risk of vitamin A deficiency. At least 500,000 children lose their sight each year in these countries, and almost 70 percent die within a year.

The Congo vitamin A campaign is supported by Swiss organisation Voire et Vivre.

Meanwhile, “Out of 711,233 children between the age of six months and five years, 677,390 children were vaccinated against measles, provided with vitamin A supplements and dewormed representing a 95.2 percent coverage," Emilienne Raoul, the minister of health and social services told IRIN on 3 April.

"At least 525,686 insecticide treated mosquito nets were also distributed," Raoul said. "The [health] campaign was a genuine success.”

The campaign aimed to reduce infant mortality by fighting malnutrition, malaria and measles, which are the leading causes of mortality and morbidity among children Congo.

IRIN