MINISTER of Health Joseph Kasonde says Zambia has no elephantiasis crisis but Government is only conducting preventive measures through the mass drug administration exercise.
Speaking on the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation’s “Sunday Interview,” Dr Kasonde said his ministry is ready to eliminate elephantiasis by 2020 because it has sufficient drugs in stock.
He said the ongoing vaccination programme in some parts of the country is aimed at eliminating the disease by breaking its cycle of transmission.
Dr Kasonde said Government is committed to ensuring that the elephantiasis cycle of transmission is cut in the period of five years.
“We have put in place a policy that will help us eliminate diseases such as elephantiasis and typhoid in the country,” he said.
He said people have been given sufficient information concerning the diseases and the need for them to report suspected cases to healthcare providers.
“What is important is that the people should get to know the disease, and in case of an outbreak, be able to report to officials on time,” Dr Kasonde said.
The Ministry of Health is hunting around townships to ensure potential carriers of elephantiasis are checked and helped.
Elephantiasis, otherwise known as lymphatic filariasis, is a parasitic infection that can result in an altered lymphatic system and cause abnormal enlargement of body parts like legs and arms.
The disease is caused by the filarial worm which is transmitted from one person to the other by the female mosquito when it takes a blood meal.
Government is currently conducting elephantiasis preventive measures in different parts of the country.
news from Zambia can be confusing like PF announcements. anyway, this is what the minister should have said in the first place. for typhoid, it is a shame that 50 yrs after independence we still grapple with cases of typhoid in Lusaka. for as long as you allow people to sell food on the streets where people also do their monkey business, typhoid is here to stay. cry freedom black man
The old dinosaur Dr.Kasonde should just resign. let the young and vibrant Dr Chilufya who is current deputy minister. Kasonde in one breath says 90% of Zambians are at risk and in another says everything is ok. Senile dementia is certainly settling in
This disease has always be there in Zambia. Its endemic, meaning that its not a new disease. Its one of the neglected tropical diseases. Asia accounts for 2/3 of the disease while Africa accounts for 1/3. There is no vaccine, so what GRZ is doing in the endemic areas is just mass drug administration whether one has the disease or not because diagnosis is challenging.
Why is this man playing politics with peoples’ lives? It is clear that Acalasia that was manageable 30 years ago inside the country can only be done in neighboring countries and abroad. It is also clear that public health has eluded incompetent political leaderships for 50 years. It is time to start removing politics from important sectors of life so we can best deal with them. Disgusting! Pathetic!
catching word is mass treatment to eradicate elephantiasis, why? I smell a rat, some one has got a deal to find market for Diethylcarbamazine tabs in the ministry of health and has come up with this mass treatment for five years and waste a lot of money for this wrong priority. This program should be voluntary the cost should be met individually, all what the health practitioners should do is to give information to the public and advise them to bare the cost for their own benefit because we will end up wasting money over this wrong priority. For example in HIV research was specific , we were told the prevalence percentage like at one stage it was 5%, Please let us look at the list of diseases and priotise them in accordance with the urgency it needs.