At least 80 children have died from measles over the past four months following an outbreak of the disease in Zimbabwe, a senior health ministry official said late Sunday.
Ministry of Health permanent secretary Jasper Chimedza said a total of 1,036 suspected cases and 125 confirmed infections have been reported since April 10.
He said the infections spiked following church gatherings that normally occur during the long Heroes Day/Defence Forces Day weekend that occurs in the first week of August.
“The Ministry of Health and Child Care wishes to inform the public that the ongoing outbreak of measles which was first reported on 10th of April has since spread nationwide following church gatherings,” Chimedza said in a statement.
He added: “These gathering which were attended by people from different provinces of the country with unknown vaccination status led to the spread of measles to previously unaffected areas.”
The hardest hit province was Manicaland, which has so far recorded 356 cases and 45 deaths.
Chimedza said the bulk of the “cases are among children aged six months to 15 from religious sects who are not vaccinated against measles due to religious beliefs.”
Some apostolic faith sects bar their members from seeking medical attention, including vaccinating their children against contagious diseases.
JN/APA