The Arab ministers of health considered the Arabic Childhood Health Conference hosted by Riyadh under the banner "Arabic Childhood Health .. A Nation's Investment) as representing a real start for creating a disease free Arabic generation. They agreed in an open dialogue held as part of the activities of the conference to exchange views on the obstacles confronting childhood health and work for finding solutions to them. The dialogue was held under the chairmanship of Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Swailem, the Head of the Shura Assembly Health and Social Committee and Ust. Salwa Shakir from the Riyadh TV and Radio Broadcasting Corporation.
We are on the way to eradicate hereditary diseases through pre marriage checkup, says Al-Mane
The conference comes in line with the Arabic Work Plan and conflicts have harmed childhood health, says Dr. Al-Fateh
Mothers Illiteracy and drug combating are challenges to be confronted, says Dr. Al-Shiekh
We are in need of joint Arabic research centers, says Dr. Mamdooh
The Arab ministers of health considered the Arabic Childhood Health Conference hosted by Riyadh under the banner "Arabic Childhood Health .. A Nation's Investment) as representing a real start for creating a disease free Arabic generation. They agreed in an open dialogue held as part of the activities of the conference to exchange views on the obstacles confronting childhood health and work for finding solutions to them. The dialogue was held under the chairmanship of Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Swailem, the Head of the Shura Assembly Health and Social Committee and Ust. Salwa Shakir from the Riyadh TV and Radio Broadcasting Corporation.
The Minister of Health Dr. Hamad Al-Mane initiated the dialogue by declaring that the Saudi child confronts some difficulties. He described these difficulties as being controllable, since the Kingdom has successfully solved the major problem represented by the basic vaccinations. The vaccination rate in the Kingdom according to Al-Mane is 95%, a matter which has lead to eradication of some diseases such as poliomyelitis.
"The Kingdom has paved the way for eradicating hereditary diseases", he said. "We want to create a generation devoid of hereditary and infective diseases by applying pre marriage checkup"
Arabic Work Plan
Dr. Al-Fateh Mohd Saeed, the state minister at the Sudanese Minister of Health said the conference banner which reads "Arabic Childhood Health .. A Nation's Investment)", comes in line with the Arabic Work Plan. He said the conference deals with 8 aspects, including evaluation of the health services in the past five years as well as defining and solving the difficulties confronting childhood health.
He said conflicts have affected childhood health in a number of Arabic countries such as Lebanon, Palestine, Iraq, and Sudan, denoting that Sudan has a ready plan for vaccinating children.
The Banner Praised
The Yemeni Minister of Health and Population Dr. Abdul Kareem Yahia Rasi praised the conference banner denoting that diseases start to appear on the Arabic child as soon as he starts to walk.
He said the Yemeni Ministry of Health concentrates on primary health care programs, especially vaccinations, denoting that vaccinations have lead to eradication of poliomyelitis in Yemen by last February.
A Parliament for the Arabic Child
The Moroccan Minster of Health Dr. Mohammed Al-Shaikh attributed the problems facing Arabic childhood health to illiteracy among mothers and poor education of girls, the most important problem according to him being drug abuse and alcohol drinking among youths, in addition to lack of love and sympathy among family members.
He said execution of free vaccination programs have helped in eradicating polio in Morocco by 1994. New programs such as the National Observatory of Child Rights have also helped in dealing with childhood problems. Furthermore, a parliament for childhood as well as a health insurance program provide more protection to children.
Formation of Joint Research Centers:
Dr. Mamdooh Kamal from Egypt said the Arab countries need to move towards protecting the lives of their children by setting suitable programs. "The psychological and health problems of adolescents, the effects of environmental pollution on childhood health, in addition to all other problems affecting the normal growth of children are the major problems confronting children in the Arabic countries", he said. "We are in need for more joint academic and field cooperation through exchange of experience and establishment of joint research centers".
The Arab League Appreciates
The Assistant Secretary General of the Arab League Ust. Nancy Bakeer extended her gratitude on behalf of the Arab League to the government of Saudi Arabia for hosting the conference.
She praised the important issues discussed in the conference, including the discussions involving the projects and plans to be executed by the Arab countries in the coming five years, as well as the discussions dealing with the failures and difficulties confronted by each Arabic country.
Important contributions
Dr. Waheeda Anwer called for establishing a society to be linked to the head of state in each Arabic country for protecting the Arab children from family violence. The Moroccan Psychiatrist Dr. Abdul Wadood said the conference is a real start for dealing with the health problems confronting the Arab children.
Dr. Aida and Dr. Mohammed Al-Khafaji from Qatar agree that concentration on treatment services alone is not enough and that effort must be directed towards educating mothers and conducting medical and scientific research.
Environmental Hygiene
Dr. Osman Al-Rabeea, the consultant of KSA minister of health, concentrated on environmental hygiene as being an important factor in childhood health, denoting that some dangerous diseases are related to environmental health.
Importance of Early Checkup
Dr. Shaikah Al-Aridi from Bahrain confirmed the necessity of subjecting all newly born babies in the Arab countries to early checkups, saying that such checkups protect children against diseases such as hereditary deafness. She highlighted the importance of establishing a record for congenital deformities among babies, denoting that environmental pollutants have been a major cause of cancer and congenital deformations in children.
An Early Conference for Children
Dr. Khalid Baradae from Syria expressed his hope that similar conferences are convened every year.
A Fund for Joint Cooperation
Dr. Iqbal Al-Bisher from Sudan stressed the importance of financial support to childhood health, stating that a fund for cooperation and support need to be established.
Dr. Hasan Mohammed from Palestine said the continuous war in Palestine is imposing great dangers on childhood health. He appreciated the support of the Arab Ministers of Health to the children of Palestine.