GENEVA, 21 March 2022 / PRN Africa / — Honourable Ministers of Health;
Honourable Jason Carter;
Dr Maha Barakat;
Ambassador Alexandre Paige;
Excellencies, dear colleagues and friends,
I thank Your Highness the Crown Prince, and also President Carter for inviting me to the Guinea Worm Summit, and for your unwavering commitment to Guinea worm eradication.
Outside the front entrance to WHO’s headquarters in Geneva is a statue commemorating the only human disease to be eradicated so far – smallpox.
The eradication of smallpox is a towering public health achievement, and a symbol of what is possible with science, partnership and determination.
Eradicating diseases is a dream for all of us who work in global health.
As you know, we are now on the brink of eradicating polio, with only 5 cases of wild poliovirus last year.
And we continue to free many countries of the scourge of neglected tropical diseases. With WHO support, five countries eliminated a neglected tropical disease last year: Gambia and Myanmar eliminated trachoma; Côte d’Ivoire and Togo eliminated human African trypanosomiasis, and Malawi eliminated lymphatic filariasis.
And as you know, we are also very close to eradicating Guinea worm disease.
Last year, we had only 15 human cases – the lowest since the eradication programme started in the 1980s, when there were more than 3.5 million cases.
In the past, almost 20 countries were endemic, and the disease cost these developing economies heavily in terms of lost agricultural productivity.
Guinea worm disease has also caused immense suffering to entire families and affected children, who have had to stay away from schools.
But all this has changed dramatically since the mid-1980s.
187 WHO Member States are now certified free of Guinea worm disease.
Only seven countries remain to be certified, and of these, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has submitted its dossier for certification, and Sudan is also on the path to certification. We had a very good discussion with the Acting Minister of Health of Sudan this morning.
This is an incredible achievement. We have accomplished what many thought was impossible.
Numerous challenges had to be overcome to get to this point, including reaching remote populations and the recent realization that domestic animals could also be infected.
Our achievements are the result of proven, community-level interventions, surveillance, vector control, disease awareness and behavioural change, as well provision of safe drinking water sources to affected communities.
While the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every aspect of our life, I’m glad to note that Guinea worm eradication activities have been minimally affected in the remaining endemic countries.
All of this has only been possible thanks to the dedication of governments and communities, and the generous support of partners and donors. Sustainable, predictable funding is critical to enable us to finish the job.
Even as we celebrate our successes, we know the job is not finished yet. Hard-won gains can be easily lost.
Chad, Ethiopia, Mali, South Sudan, and Angola remain endemic for the disease, but they are making tremendous progress toward stopping transmission.
And this last mile, as you know, is the most difficult.
We should remind ourselves that there is no medicine to cure Guinea worm disease, no vaccine to prevent it, and humans do not develop immunity to the disease.
WHO’s new road map for neglected tropical diseases provides guidance for the next decade, including a new target for the eradication of Guinea worm disease by 2030 – when I say 2030 by the way, it doesn’t mean that all countries should wait until 2030, it can be done before 2030.
I pay tribute to the commitment of the late Dr Mwele Malecela, under whose leadership this road map was developed. May she rest in peace.
This work continues to require a holistic approach, from ministries of health and water to regional officials, to village communities.
But like in any eradication programme, challenges are expected.
And, as we were closing-in on interrupting transmission in humans, infection by the same worm started to surface in animals, mainly in dogs.
We are redoubling our efforts and using an interdisciplinary One Health approach to address this.
It is important to continue operational research to find effective solutions to emerging challenges like the role that animals play in transmission.
Dear colleagues and friends,
Each community, and each country that stops Guinea worm transmission serves as a reminder that great challenges can be overcome with diligence, dedication, and diplomacy.
The unwavering support from the international community is a testament to the power of community engagement, human potential, and intensive collaborative effort.
WHO is committed to working with all stakeholders to stop the transmission of this disease, which has caused so much suffering.
I dream of the day when we can add a new statue to our collection at WHO – commemorating the eradication of Guinea worm.
That dream is within reach. I think I have met today many of the delegation leaders to this meeting and I have seen a very strong commitment and that’s why I think this dream is within reach.
It is the dream of President Carter, without whose leadership we would not be where we are today – and thank to him and our respect and appreciation. And we’re glad to have him here through Jason and Henry.
It is, sadly, a dream that our sister Mwele did not live to see realised. But we owe it to her, and to every community that is affected by Guinea worm, to finish the job and consign this disease to history.
But our efforts cannot stop with this one disease.
Our mission must be to support all countries to build resilient health systems that address the full range of health threats that people face.
The COVID-19 pandemic has taught the world a painful but powerful lesson: that when health is at risk, everything is at risk.
Health is not merely an outcome of development; it is the means – the foundation of social and economic stability and security.
It’s not a luxury for the rich; it is a fundamental human right.
WHO remains committed to working for that right for everyone, everywhere.
I thank you. Shukraan jazeelan.
SOURCE World Health Organization (WHO)