HANOI, Sept. 21 (Xinhuanet) -- Vietnam has, so far this year, detected nearly 50,000 dengue fever cases, including 74 fatalities,posting year-on-year increases of 100 percent and 60.9 percent, respectively.

    The country reported more than 9,100 new dengue fever patients,including nine deaths, from Aug. 20 to Sept. 20, the Youth newspaper reported on Tuesday.

    Most of the victims are from southern localities such as the provinces of Soc Trang, Bac Lieu and Ben Tre, where the weather is most favorable for the development of mosquitoes.

    The main reasons for the severe outbreak of dengue fever are sudden climatic changes, shortage of clean water, and poor awareness among many rural residents about the danger of the mosquito-borne disease.

    In an effort to minimize the number of new infections, the government has launched programs on dengue fever prevention nationwide, supplied localities with more mosquito-killing chemicals, medicines and equipment, and called for local health agencies to raise public awareness of the disease.

    It has also spent 18 billion Vietnamese dong (1.1 million US dollars) on anti-dengue fever activities so far this year.

    The country reported 35,073 cases of dengue fever infections, including 58 fatalities last year, up 48 percent and 45 percent against the year earlier, respectively. Enditem