JEDDAH, 20 April 2006 — Prince Mishaal ibn Majed, governor of Jeddah, officially launched yesterday the first comprehensive campaign against the spread of dengue fever in Jeddah.
“The campaign must reach every house, school and mosque. Awareness is the only effective way to combat dengue fever,” Prince Mishaal said.
The prince also launched a website, www.dengue.med.sa, which contains important information about the disease and offers basic preventive methods as well as helpful links. “The public has an important role to play in the fight against this disease. If we receive full public cooperation, the problem will be solved within a few months,” the prince pointed out.
Minister of Health Dr. Hamad Al-Manie, Jeddah Mayor Adel Faqeeh and a number of officials from the Ministry of Health and the Jeddah Municipality, attended the launch of the campaign at the governor’s office in Madinah Road.
Al-Manie said the fight against the disease would fail without public support. “Only through cooperation between the public and the authorities can we combat the disease successfully,” he said.
Faqeeh said that there was a free round-the clock phone number — 940 — to give information about the disease and receive complaints about places to be sprayed with pesticides. The municipality has managed to dry 70 percent of the standing water that is a fertile breeding environment for the Aedes mosquito, the disease carrier.
He said the real danger comes from houses because the mosquito breeds in dark, damp areas.
