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Communicable diseases haunt ’haven of peace’
2006-09-05 08:01:26
By Editor
Dar es Salaam City Medical Officer Dr Deo Mutasiwa says more than 200 people have been treated for measles. He has named areas of high prevalence as Ilala and Temeke.
According to experts, the highly contagious disease, affects children but adults too can contract it if their immunity is low.
As part of post natal requirements, babies get vaccinated against measles at the age of nine months.
However, some have contracted the disease even after vaccination and as medical experts say, when immunity is weaning, the possibility to contact the disease is very high.
The disease would surface in favourable conditions, according to medical experts and one of them is congestion of people.
However, in Dar es Salaam, it is difficult to avoid mingling with crowds. Commuter buses overload during peak hours. Market places, primary schools and social halls are overcrowded at all times.
We have every reason to believe that some residential areas( without mentioning them) contribute to the problem of disease outbreaks because of poor planning.
We think Dar es Salaam residents have to take extra caution to rescue their lives. Authorities must plan how to cope with the ever increasing population, including building low cost houses.
We do not want to cause panic. However, we have to be on the alert. The rate of communicable diseases, such as cholera, has gone up.
The city has been a centre of business and learning. Residents should remember that disease is one of the greatest enemies of development.
Other councils should emulate this
On Monday this paper carried a story on the ongoing charcoal trade in Tanga Region, and the steps being taken to control it.
Local councils in the Region have been directed by regional authorities to ensure that all charcoal dealers in the region are enlisted with their respective local councils in an effort to control the charcoal business.
Issuing the directive, Tanga Regional Administrative Secretary (RAS) Ndibalema Kisheru said the registration of charcoal traders, including carpentry workshop owners would help the Forestry Department to trace their sources of forest products with the aim of controlling and encouraging sustainable utilization of forest products.
The procedure, he said, would entail the establishing special sites for conducting the trade as a way of restricting the wanton felling of trees for charcoal production.
We think that this step is in the right direction. In fact any step taken in good faith that aims at conserving the environment is a step in the right direction, and should be emulated by other regions.
It’s also encouraging to observe that since the declaration by the Fourth Phase administration that it would not compromise with any activity that is destructive to the environment, and singled out the destruction of our forests through indiscriminate cutting down of trees.
We also observe that other local councils have responded to this call positively, and have set up various procedures for controlling the harvesting of forest products in the country.
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