Cameroon

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HKI has been operating in Cameroon since 1992. The organization works in all provinces of the country but activities are concentrated in the Center, the Far-North and the East Provinces. HKI’s main office is located Yaoundé; another office is in Maroua. Current activities include:

• Vitamin A Supplementation in all 10 provinces >>more
• Child Survival interventions including Zinc supplementation>>more
• Onchocerciasis Control>>more
• Helminthiasis Control>>more
• Addressing nutrition in emergency situations >>more

Program Descriptions:

Vitamin A Supplementation: Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is recognized as a leading cause of preventable pediatric blindness in developing countries. Improving vitamin A status of children reduces their risk of mortality from measles and from diarrhea by 50%. In Cameroon, studies show more than a third of the population are at risk of VAD, including more than 45% of children under 2. The goal of HKI’s vitamin A program is to reach at least 80% of the targeted population.

Since 1998, HKI has provided technical assistance for training, planning and supervision. With the support of HKI, Cameroon distributes vitamin A capsules during National Immunization Days (NIDs). Through the NIDs, in 2005 alone, vitamin A capsules were distributed to over 3,600,000 children. Since 2006, HKI has implemented a combination of strategies, including local vaccination days, local vitamin A supplementation Days, Community Directed Treatment of Ivermectin (the drug used to control onchocerciasis), and expanded, routine, immunization program services. In 2006, vitamin A supplementation activities took place in all the 174 health districts of the country with coverage surpassing 85%. To read a press release about HKI's vitamin A programs in Cameroon, please click here.

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Child Survival: HKI aims to reduce infant and youth mortality by focusing on improving nutrition, and controlling malaria, diarrheic diseases, and severe respiratory infections. HKI intends to reach over 5 million inhabitants in three provinces comprising 11 health districts, including 190,985 children under 5 and 244,036 women of procreative age. Main activities include participation in District Health and Nutrition Action weeks (DHNAW), zinc supplementation, training, developing educational materials, and monitoring.

The goal of DHNAW is to improve that health status of children under 5 and women of reproductive age by strengthening health care professionals’ knowledge of Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI) through training activities, the production of materials and support services. To learn more about the effectiveness of DHNAW, please click here.

Zinc Supplementation: Since 1978, UNICEF and WHO have recommended the use of Oral Re-hydration Therapy (ORT) or Oral Re-hydration Salts (ORS) as a primary means to address diarrhea cases and reduce infant mortality; subsequent research led to a revised formula of ORS that includes zinc supplementation, which has been shown to reduce the frequency and severity of diarrhea.

Since zinc is not used in Cameroon as part of the diarrhea treatment protocol, HKI is currently implementing a pilot zinc supplementation test in the East province to collect information about its impact on diarrhoeal diseases among children under five years old. In Cameroon, diarrhea affects up to 20% of children under 5. Based on the findings, the program will then be expanded to the rest of the country.

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Onchocerciasis (river blindness) is endemic in all 10 provinces of Cameroon. In 1992, HKI began efforts to treat onchocerciasis via health workers in a highly endemic district of Center Province. Today, HKI works in three provinces (East, Far North and Center), providing treatment to 848,728 people

HKI trains health professionals, community distributors and other community leaders to implement and monitor the program, develops educational, training and advocacy materials, and provides monitoring and evaluation. HKI also supports the National Onchocerciasis Program of Cameroon with training, epidemiological studies and advocacy. HKI-Cameroon also provides technical assistance to Angola, Burundi, Equatorial Guinea and Sierra Leona.

Helminthiasis Control: The goals of HKI’s helminthiasis control program are to stop the spread of filarial infection, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis and intestinal helminthiasis as well as to alleviate the suffering and disability of individuals already affected by these diseases in 9 health districts of the Far North province. The program will be integrated to the existing onchocerciasis program network and is part of a global strategy to integrate community based programs in Cameroon. The program will reach more than 1,013,384 persons. HKI trains health professionals, community distributors and teachers to implement the program, develops educational and training materials, and provides monitoring and evaluation. To read a press release about HKI's efforts to eliminate lymphatic filariasis, please click here.

Addressing Nutrition in Emergency Situations: During the last three years, Cameroon has experienced an influx of 27,000 refugees from the Central Africa Republic. The refugees, mainly based in the East and Adamaoua provinces, are living in precarious settings with a high prevalence of severe acute malnutrition among children. In order to improve their nutritional status, HKI is collaborating with UNICEF to implement nutrition actions in the East province, where HKI already provides support for child survival (and offers vitamin A supplementation and onchocerciasis control.) HKI also assisted the government in creating a Therapeutic Feeding Program and a Supplementary Feeding Program. HKI will help train health workers on baby-friendly hospital initiatives, managing acute malnutrition and implementing community based feeding programs.

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Program Partners

• The African Program for Onchocerciasis Control (APOC)
• CIDA
• Lions Club International Foundation (LCIF) and Sight First Program
• Merck & Co., Inc. - Mectizan® Donation Program
• Ministry of Public Health, Direction of Health Promotion, Nutrition Division
• Ministry of Public Health, National Program for Lymphatic Filariasis Elimination
• Ministry of Public Health, National Immunization Program
• Ministry of Public Health, National Schistosomiasis and Intestinal helminthiasis Control program
• Ministry of Public Health, National Onchocerciasis Control Program
• Ministry of Public Health, National Program for the Prevention of Blindness
• NGO Coalition for Onchocerciasis control activities (the Carter Center, Sight Savers International, the International Eye Foundation, Perspective)
• Nippon Foundation
• Plan Cameroon
• Population Services International (known as ACMS in Cameroon)
• All 10 Public Health Provincial Delegations
• USAID
• UNICEF
• WHO

Key Staff

• Xavier Crespin, M.D., M.P.H. - Country Director:
• Martin Nankap - Nutrition Coordinator
• Julie Akame - Program Officer for East Province and Center Province
• Christian Zoa , Finance Officer
• Serge Akongo - Program Assistant for IEC