WHO AFRO Report | Control, elimination, and eradication efforts for neglected tropical diseases
This report summarizes the findings of a scoping review of published literature undertaken to highlight control, elimination, and eradication efforts towards NTDs across the WHO African Region over the last 30 years.
This systematic scoping review investigated the state of control, elimination, and eradication of NTDs in the 47 Member States of WHO African Region. Peer-reviewed publications on NTDs relevant to the African Region from January 1990 to December 2022 were identified through PubMed, Web of Science, and the Cochrane database. Technical reports and guidance documents from WHO, UN, partner websites and publications, academic and research institutions were sought and reviewed. Further, availability of country-specific multi-year NTD master plans were documented. The purpose of these efforts was to find relevant technical and guidance documents on the control, elimination, and eradication of NTDs in the WHO African Region.
The report underlines the need for standardized diagnostic tools, mass drug administration (MDA) campaigns, and monitoring and evaluation activities for NTD programs. It advocates for a more integrated approach to maximize the impact of available resources and highlights the importance of focusing on mobile or displaced populations, who may contribute to the re-emergence or persistence of NTDs as countries strive to interrupt transmission. The review also points out the necessity of addressing NTD control efforts in hard-to-reach areas, either due to remoteness or security concerns, and underscores the potential benefits of establishing academic partnerships or regional centres of excellence. These findings are poised to contribute significantly to regional strategies and scientific evidence base within the African continent​.
Large strides have been made towards the control, elimination, and eradication of NTDs across the WHO African Region since the announcement of the MDGs. This report provides a high-level overview of the state of science regarding these since 1990. This report illustrated the different thematic areas, locations, number of publications, and funding entities of peer-reviewed articles focusing on NTD control, elimination, and eradication in the region. Furthermore, the report presented an overview of countries with multi-year strategic plans for NTDs, highlighting gaps in
country-level programmes. Moving forward, it is important to also investigate and discuss implementation of NTD control programme in the region in the final comprehensive report.