Nine countries in eastern Africa account for three-fourths of the global incidence of kala-azar, also known as visceral leishmaniasis
In October 2023, WHO announced that Bangladesh had successfully eradicated VL – making it the first country in the world to achieve the landmark.
In the wake of the rising public health threat caused by parasitic infection visceral leishmaniasis (VL), called kala-azar in Hindi), the World Health Organization (WHO) launched a new framework on June 12 to guide health authorities, policy makers and other stakeholders to eradicate the disease in eastern Africa.
VL leads to fever, weight loss, and enlargement of the spleen and liver. It can also prove to be deadly if not treated timely. It spreads through the bite of infected female sandflies and is endemic in 80 countries.
In 2022, eastern Africa accounted for 73 per cent of global VL caseload, 50 per cent of which occurred in children aged under 15 years.
Earlier, between 2004 and 2008, Bangladesh, India and Nepal collectively accounted for 70 per cent of the global caseload.
However, in October 2023, WHO announced that Bangladesh had successfully eradicated VL – making it the first country in the world to achieve the landmark.
The eradication programmes in Asia commenced in 2005, with the launch of a regional strategic framework for VL.
“This framework, coupled with an accelerated elimination programme, political commitment and sustained stakeholder support, significantly contributed to achieving elimination goals,” WHO mentioned in a news report.
“The new framework for eastern Africa presents a similar opportunity for the nine endemic countries, offering a comprehensive approach for countries to implement strategies, assess progress, identify gaps and build capacity,” it added.
The WHO informed that the framework outlines five main strategies for guiding VL elimination — (i) early diagnosis and treatment; (ii) integrated vector management; (iii) effective surveillance; (iv) advocacy, social mobilisation and partnership-building; and (v) implementation and operational research.
The world’s apex health organisation also described a stepwise process for implementing the main elimination phases and set regional targets.
These targets include a 90 per cent reduction in VL incidence in the eastern Africa sub-region to fewer than 1,500 cases per year by 2030; detection and treatment of 90 per cent of cases within 30 days of onset of symptoms by 2030 and a 100 per cent decline in VL deaths in children by 2030.
“The VL elimination framework will offer important direction to countries in the region and provide momentum to reach the finish line of elimination,” Dereje Duguma, State Minister of the Federal Ministry of Health, Ethiopia was quoted in the news piece.
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