UNITED NATIONS, Nov 27: The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has flown in nearly 130 tons of medicines, health and nutrition supplies since August for 350,000 women and children in Venezuela to help alleviate the impact of ongoing economic crisis on the most vulnerable, said the fund on Monday. Working with the Venezuelan Health Ministry, UNICEF has provided 30 tons of medicines and health supplies to help stop the spread of infectious diseases and to improve health outcomes for children and women in vulnerable communities, it said in a press release. These supplies will be used in the treatment and care for 25,000 pregnant women, 10,000 newborns in neonatal wards and more than 2,300 children living with HIV. Through UNICEF’s expanded program, 40,000 pregnant women now have access to rapid HIV and syphilis tests, while 100,000 children and pregnant women have access to malaria treatment. UNICEF has also delivered 100 tons of nutritional supplies for 150,000 children, including micronutrients, therapeutic food for the treatment of malnutrition, and deworming and water purification tablets, said UNICEF. The medicines and health supplies are part of an agreement with the Venezuelan government to expand UNICEF’s programs in the country, it said. UNICEF, present in Venezuela since 1991, has over the past two years strengthened its work with partners to provide vulnerable children affected by the economic crisis with support in education, health, nutrition and protection. So far this year, UNICEF has also supported the vaccination of children with 2.5 million doses of measles vaccines and provided antiretrovirals for 2,334 children and antimalarial treatment for 150,000 children, it said.
(AGENCIES)
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