The government will launch the National Vitamin A Plus Campaign across the country on June 28, aiming to provide Vitamin A supplements to nearly 24 million children.
State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr MA Muhit announced the campaign at a press briefing at the Secretariat on Thursday.
The campaign will run simultaneously nationwide from 8am to 4pm. Children who miss the scheduled day will be able to receive the supplement from their respective upazila health complexes the following day.
To ensure wider coverage, the program will continue for four additional days in 58 hard-to-reach upazilas across 12 districts.
Under the campaign, children aged 6–11 months will receive a blue Vitamin A capsule, while those aged 12–59 months will be given a red high-dose capsule.
Dr Muhit said all preparations had been completed, with around 120,000 permanent distribution centers and 500 temporary centers established across the country.
He said Vitamin A deficiency was once a major cause of childhood and night blindness in Bangladesh, but sustained supplementation efforts had significantly reduced the prevalence of such conditions.
Health ministry officials said the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has supplied 4 million blue capsules and 22 million red capsules for this year's campaign. Distribution is already underway, and all centers are expected to receive supplies by Friday.
Officials advised parents not to give children the capsules on an empty stomach and urged all eligible children, except those suffering from severe acute illnesses, to take part in the campaign.
Among those present at the briefing were Director General of Health Services Prof Dr Probhat Chandra Biswas and Additional Director General (Administration) Prof Dr Zahid Raihan