Samoa is addressing the nation’s outbreak of dengue fever through a national cleaning campaign.

Since November of last year, there has been more than 200 confirmed cases with the majority from the main island of Upolu, while a few cases have been reported from Savai’i.

However cleaning will be carried out mostly in the northwest part of Upolu. The fumigation efforts will involve spraying of schools and hospitals to get rid of mosquitoes.

The Health Ministry is giving the campaign two weeks to make gains and if it does not work, a new strategy will be looked at.

Dr Alec Ekeroma, the Director General of Health, had told local media that travel guidelines will be revised for visitors to Samoa. Five people have been confirmed to have died in the last dengue outbreak from 2017 to 2018.

In American Samoa, they have been calling for people to do their part to prevent dengue fever after the dengue outbreak in neighboring Samoa.

The Samoan Ministry of Health has advised people to destroy mosquito breeding grounds and keep homes free of the insects, watch for dengue symptoms, and avoid unnecessary movement at dawn and dusk.