Abstract:
In September, 1968, Sagure Clinic started its Maternal and Child Health
services on a bi-weekly session scheme* Nearly all of the Sagure village'
Under Five children have been reached* In addition a few Yeloma children,
living on the border of the village, have attended the sessions regularly. But
the Yeloma, hinterland has remained outside of the influence area, (See maps
of figure 1 & 2), It was therefore decided, that the Yeloma‘farming
district should be visited once by a Mobile Well Baby Clinic, offering
medical check up, health education and immunizations. At the same time the
mothers should be advised to come down to Sagure for joining the bi-weekly
MCE conferences.
There was yet another purpose, linked with the Mobile Team visit. In the
beginning of 1969 a milk collection station was established down in Sagure
village, as part of a Farmer’s Trading Center. In other areas of the
Chilalo awraja the farmers have rushed to the CABU Trading Center to sell
their milk for 25 cents per litre. It has been forseen, that a similar development
is going to take place around the Sagure Center. Before the programme
really got off the ground, it was therefore considered to be of interest to
know about the present situation of milk production and consumption,
focusing on the pre-school children. From previous surveys it was known,
that cow- milk feeding of small children is quite common in this part of
Arussi (ref. no« 1, 2). The anticipated milk selling boom might very well
bring in its wake a decreased cow milk consumption among young children,
eventually followed by a possible change to the worse of their nutritional
status. The survey therefore aimed of identifying the base-line of the
present cow milk feeding situation'and the level of nutritional status.
The survey was carried out in May, 19&9( Guenbot I96I in Ethiopian' calender)
a little mome than one month after the end of the long fasting a period
