Helen Keller International Invests in High and Sustained Vitamin A Coverage in Senegal

Senegal, September 8, 2005 – Helen Keller International (HKI) is supporting local vitamin A supplementation (VAS) days in Senegal as part of the organization’s commitment to high and sustained vitamin A coverage as a means of enhancing maternal and child health. In collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through its BASICS and MOST programs, and with UNICEF through funding from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and Micronutrient Initiative (MI), HKI organized local VAS days that took place during July and August throughout Senegal’s 56 health districts.

As part of the communication plan to promote awareness of the VAS days in the districts, HKI developed a radio spot that was aired in both French and Wolof, the most widely-spoken languages in the country. The broadcast ran nationally four times a day for two weeks by several popular radio stations. In addition, HKI introduced a vitamin A logo, shown below and worn by volunteers, and posters advocating VAS, breastfeeding, and daily consumption of vitamin A-rich foods. Following the end of this first round of local VAS days, HKI is in the process of conducting a survey, funded by USAID, to determine levels of coverage. Preliminary results of the survey show a national coverage level of 86% for children aged 6 months to 5 years.

Child mortality remains high in Senegal, with 138 children under the age of five dying for every 1,000 live births. A recent HKI study reappraising the level of vitamin A deficiency (VAD) in sub-Saharan Africa showed that 42.4% of children under five are at risk of VAD. VAS has been proven to reduce under-five child mortality by 25% to 35%, saving the lives of over 645,000 children per year. The World Bank and other global health experts consider VAS to be the single most cost-effective health intervention. It takes only one high-dose capsule administered to children aged six months to five years, every six months, to prevent vitamin A-deficiency blindness and improve health – at the cost of approximately US $1.

At an April 2005 workshop launching the VAS project for child survival in Central and West Africa, the Senegalese government reaffirmed its commitment to high and sustained vitamin A coverage. In recent years, 32 Senegalese health districts that were supported by partners such as Christian Children’s Fund, UNICEF, USAID/BASICS II, and World Vision boasted good levels of coverage. However, the other 24 health districts, which did not establish these partnerships, showed minimal coverage, with over half of the under-five population receiving no VAS at all in 2003. Recognizing that opportunities to deliver vitamin A exist at the community level, the Senegalese government adopted local VAS days to ensure routine vitamin A administration in all districts. The government’s strategy is to cover gaps in districts that lack support from partners so that high coverage of at least 90% can be attained. Local VAS days will be systematically integrated into the annual operations of health districts, and efforts to find funding from local collectives, partners, and health committees will be done to ensure their sustainability.

HKI projects that the second round of local VAS days will be completed by the end of 2005.