ReliefWeb

Highlights

• Overall 2,860 measles cases and 79 deaths have been reported since the declaration of the outbreak in May 2018. To date, some 494,474 children have been vaccinated and UNICEF has purchased an additional 1,912,000 vaccine doses that will arrive in the country in mid-October.

• 173,772 children aged 6 to 59 months have been admitted for severe acute malnutrition in UNICEF supported health facilities since January 2018

• 13,321 children have benefited from psychosocial, recreational and educational activities in child friendly spaces in the south and the Lake region

• As of end of August, UNICEF HAC has only received 43% of the US$54 million appeal for 2018. An additional US$ 30.5 million is required for UNICEF to meet the needs of vulnerable children and women through an integrated multisectoral response.

Situation overview and Analysis

Active screening for acute malnutrition was carried out in the Gore emergency zone to determine the nutritional status of children. Preliminary results based on the middle upper arm circumference (MUAC) measurements show that 3% of the children are in severe acute malnutrition (SAM) in the refugee population compared to 2% in the indigenous children and 13% of refugee children are in moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) against 14% of the indigenous children.

UNICEF education programme carried out different activities in preparation of the 2018-19 school year that will start in October 2018. In the Lake region, an assessment was conducted on the status of 136 existing temporary learning spaces (TLS) and 126 classrooms built with sustainable materials. This exercise identified 56 TLS and 7 classrooms that need to be rehabilitated. These infrastructures are in 21 schools and will ensure the retention of approximately 9,120 students.

In the south, the region affected by the Central African Republic (CAR) crisis, UNICEF put in place school materials that will be distributed to 2,897 students once schools open in October.
The measles outbreak that was declared in May 2018 continues, with 430 cases and 2 deaths reported in September.

Overall 2,860 cases and 79 deaths have been reported since the start of the outbreak. 36 out of 117 districts are affected by the outbreak, and so far, 10 districts have benefitted from immunization campaigns. UNICEF has purchased an additional 1,912,000 vaccine doses that will arrive in the country in mid-October.