School deworming programme begins next Monday

Accra, Feb. 5, GNA - Ghana Education Service (GES) in collaboration with the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and UNICEF would on Monday, February 12 begin a deworming programme for children in all public basic schools. A total of 4.5 million children from kindergarten to Junior Secondary School (JSS) Form Three in 28,043 schools are expected to receive a tablet of Mebendazole (500mg) each for the treatment of soil-transmitted worms only.

This first national deworming exercise would be carried out from February 12 to February 16.

Head teachers and school health teachers, who have been trained to administer the deworming medicine, which is estimated at a total cost of 80,000 dollars, would also teach their pupils about the dangers of worm infestations.

Launching the programme in Accra on Monday, Mr Kwame Ampofo-Twumasi, Deputy Minister of Education, Science and Sport, said the deworming exercise would have enormous benefits for the health of children since it would improve their appetite and well-being. "Regular deworming also promotes good nutrition since there would not be any worms feeding on the child's food intake", he said.

Mr Ampofo-Twumasi said considering the link between worm infestation, sanitation and hygiene, children would be given reinforced sanitation and hygiene education as part of the deworming activities. He said the deworming exercises would be carried out in two phases with the first being the treatment for common worms such as hookworms, round worms and whipworms and the second phase to be carried out later in the year being treatment for schistosomiasis (bilharzias), a type of worm infestation caused by water-transmitted worms.

Mr Ampofo-Twumasi said the Government was committed to achieving the goals of education for all and as part of the initiative the Government introduced the Capitation Grant as a way of encouraging all children of school-going age. who were out of school, to be in school. "Last year, we recorded over 16 per cent increase in enrolment in our public basic schools. The increase in enrolment has resulted in the need for more teachers and additional infrastructure as well as teaching and learning materials. The Ministry of Education, Science and Sport is making all efforts to address the issue," he said.

Professor Agyemang Badu Akosa, Director-General, Ghana Health Service, said scientific evidence had shown that four out of every 10 children in the Northern part of Ghana were malnourished while two out of 10 were malnourished in the South.

He said in the past emphasis on personal hygiene was paramount in schools with the checking of handkerchiefs, fingernails and uniforms on a weekly basis, but this was hardly done these days relegating issues of personal hygiene to the background.

He said the issue of personal hygiene had to be revisited by all to help to promote good health.

The GHS Director-General said it was unfortunate that almost all playgrounds in schools were bare soil surfaces without any grass exposing the children to soil-worm infestation. It was for such a reason that the deworming programme was being lauded as a good initiative, he said.

Prof. Akosa, who is also a Pathologist, said most severe worm infestation could lead to death citing instances where he had performed a number of autopsies that had revealed large numbers of worms running from the nostrils to the rectum.

"The start of the deworming programme is really a welcome initiative that should be backed by education so that pupils could carry the message to the parents so that worm infestation would be treated seriously by all," he said.

Mr Mark Young, Chief of Child Health and Nutrition, UNICEF, said worm infestation had been identified as one of the causes of malnutrition leading to anaemia and child mortality. "This programme would help children to attend school regularly and do well too," he said.

Mr Young expressed the hope that Ghanaians would take sanitation issues seriously so as to limit worm infestation among its citizens. Mr Samuel Bannerman-Mensah, Director-General, GES, said child health was important because without it education came to nought.