The government has still not succeeded in getting any financial assistance from the donors regarding the control of dengue virus. Well-placed sources told Business Recorder here on Saturday that the federal government had called for foreign assistance worth Rs 974 million from donors to control rapidly spreading dengue fever in Pakistan as the total amount projected to fight the epidemic is Rs 1.6 billion.
"About two weeks back, the concerned governmental authorities during a meeting forwarded the request for aid but still no positive response has been received", sources disclosed. "Pakistan does not need the financial aid only but also the technical assistance. The technical assistance is needed for capacity building. World Health Organisation (WHO) has decided to provide the technical assistance to Pakistan and in this regard, the training workshops for the doctors would be organise in the major cities of the country", sources added.
Dengue is increasingly becoming an epidemic in Pakistan. Due to the high cost of treatment, the disease is expected to spread more rapidly in 2011 than in previous years. On October 20, a team of experts on dengue virus from Thailand reached the country. These experts will also provide technical assistance to the doctors in Pakistan. Thailand is not a particular mosquito infested country, and tends to be pretty average for a tropical country. Mosquito borne illnesses exist here, but are not a common infliction upon expats, especially in urban areas.
The disease "dengue fever" is carried by a particular species of mosquito, the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which is active all day. It is on the rise to becoming one of the top public health problems in the tropics. Symptoms of dengue fever usually start to appear between 5 and 7 days after being bitten. The symptoms include severe headaches, high fever, which may fluctuate, bone aches, joint and muscle pains, nausea and vomiting, and a rash of small red spots a few days after the onset of fever.
Sources said that the draft of 5-year long strategy to combat against dengue was presented in front of the government of Punjab for approval but the provincial government has raised objection regarding the ''structural design'' of the strategy about which the Punjab government said that it wanted to establish a ''cell'' that would be headed by the chief minister himself.