World Health Organization- sponsored vaccination programs have helped to bring down the child mortality rate in the Indian Ocean archipelago of Zanzibar.

Francois Rumed, UNICEF representative to Zanzibar, said on Thursday that the efforts by the Zanzibar government to reduce child mortality were commendable.

Available statistics showed that the rate of child mortality in the isles had been reduced more compared with that in the Tanzania mainland.

Zanzibar is a part of the United Republic of Tanzania.

Statistics in the Tanzania Demographic Report showed that the rate of children who died at the age of one day is 61 per 1,000 whereas the rate for the Tanzania mainland is 68 per 1,000.

The Zanzibar rate of children who died under the age of five years is 101 out of every 1,000 children whereas that for the Tanzania mainland is 112 out of every 1,000 children.

The World Health Organization in recent years has been assisting Zanzibar authorities in popularizing the use of vaccines against such illnesses as polio, whooping cough, tuberculosis, measles, hookworms and lack of vitamins.

Source: Xinhua