Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - Earlier this week, Mexico's Ministry of Health launched the 1° Jornada Nacional de Lucha contra Zika, Dengue y Chikungunya, a week-long campaign that reinforces the government's actions of prevention and control of the diseases transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito in the 32 entities of the country.

The national campaign, which is being carried out April 3 to 7 will benefit more than 35 million people in the most risky areas. On Monday, Puerto Vallarta joined in the effort, with a presentation to the students at the Cecytej No. 7 high school.

The day started with the director of Health Region VIII, Dr. Jaime Álvarez Zayas, detailing the actions that are being carried out in the six municipalities that comprise it. "We will be working in priority communities; we will start in Tomatlán, Cabo Corrientes and Puerto Vallarta, which due to geographical area and climatic conditions, have a higher density of mosquitoes."

Defining the scope of the works, he explained, "We will do house-to-house promotion, as well as a review of primary and secondary school environments and, in conjunction with the municipal government, we will be working on the removal of debris that collects water and attracts mosquitoes."

In addition, Municipal health workers in khaki vests are sweeping through neighborhoods, inspecting, spraying, and knocking on doors to inform residents of the symptoms of these diseases and to share techniques for keeping their homes mosquito free.

After his presentation, Puerto Vallarta DIF President Candelaria Tovar de Dávalos took the podium and urged the students to not only implement the prevention measures recommended by the Ministry of Health, but above all to share information with their neighbors, friends and relatives, so all citizens can take the necessary preventive actions.

"Beyond the health sector, it is up to our families to prevent these diseases. As authorities, we are doing our part, but it is with the help of citizens and working as a team that we will reduce the reproduction of the vector transmitter every day," said DIF President Candelaria Tovar de Dávalos.

Afterwards, a plaque was unveiled proclaiming Cecytej No. 7 an "environment free of mosquito breeding grounds." The authorities congratulated the director of the educational institution, Sandra Isabel Gomez Real, her collaborators and students, for obtaining this certification and invited them to keep the facilities in these conditions.

More information about Dengue and Chikungunya, symptoms and preventive measures, can be found in THIS ARTICLE, which was written by BanderasNews.com's Lorena Sonrisas in May of 2015.