A mass treatment campaign to for the sensitization and treatment of Yaw in communities has just rounded off in the East Region.

The campaign ran from December 18-20 and targeted communities around the health districts of Abong-Mbang, Doumé, Lomié, Mbang, Molondou, Messamena, Ndélélé, Nguelemendouka and Yokadouma, all found in the Congo Basin.

A tropical disease that is most often neglected, yaw is most common in remote and intertropical environments and even spread into an epidemic. Thus the various partners present at the launch of the campaign all agreed that the disease is common in the East Region, especially among the pygmy community where it is commonly known as “Batakomba”.

It is for this reason that the Secretary General at the Ministry of Public Health, Professor Louis Richard Ndjock, representing the Minister of Public Health hoped the challenge of providing medication to all the targeted communities will be met.

The campaign took place under the theme “I take the azytromicine … I kick yaw out of my village / community” targeted from children aged 6 months to adults; both men and women.

“The major challenges posed by this mass azytromicine treatment campaign are firstly that of reaching a therapeutic coverage of more than 90% and secondly, the context of the Covid-19 pandemic,” Professor Louis Richard Ndjock said, while also reassuring the population of all the measures taken against the COVID-19. He also launched a strong appeal to all the target population of this campaign to take their dose of azytromycine which he said is the best way to kick the disease out of their communities.