DUSHANBE, October 15, 2012, Asia-Plus – The Republican Tropical Disease Center is expected to meet tomorrow to review the results of two rounds of the national de-worming program, Fotima Ghoibova, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Health (MoH), told Asia-Plus in an interview.

According to her, the first round of the national de-worming program targeting more than 2.6 children aged under 17 and 2 million women of reproductive age was administered out from April 16 to April 26.  

“The second round targeting some 1.7 million preschool age children was carried out from September 17 to September 28,” Ghoibova noted.

During the rounds, two medications Albendazole and Praziquantel were distributed to all schools in Tajikistan.  In addition to the medication, the Rostropovich-Vishnevskaya Foundation (RVF) provided training to medical professionals and educators on how to prevent re-infection.  The main cause of helminthic infection is the contamination of water sources from raw sewage and poor sanitation.

The program was reportedly carried out under support pf the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe and  the Rostropovich-Vishnevskaya Foundation (RVF).

We will recall that the Director of the Republican Tropical Disease Center, the U.S. Civil Affairs Team, and the RVF visited School #141 and School #1 in Vahdat on October 1 as part of an ongoing US-Tajik health initiative aimed at reducing the overall rate of soil-transmitted helminthic infections in Tajikistan.

Funded by the U.S. Department of Defense and implemented by the U.S. based NGO RVF, this program was aimed at treating women of child bearing age and children under 17 throughout Tajikistan.  The de-worming program is another example of the U.S. commitment to improving the lives of Tajik citizens.  Since 1992, the American people have provided more than $984 million in programs and humanitarian aid that support Tajikistan’s democratic institutions, health care, education, and economic growth.