On Wednesday, the Carter Centre said the world had recorded the fewest Guinea Worm cases in the history of the eradication campaign. It said Guinea worm disease prevalence worldwide in 2021, was the lowest annual case total ever recorded, as reported only in four countries.
According to the Carter Centre, in 2021, seven human cases of Guinea worm disease were reported in Chad. Four cases were reported in South Sudan, two in Mali, and one in Ethiopia. Angola and Cameroon, which each had one human case in 2020, had none in 2021.
It was imperative that yesterday, South Sudan join the world in the third annual World Neglected Tropical Diseases Day, which was conceived by the United Arab Emirates on Sunday, Jan. 30. In Juba, it was held at the Pyramid Hotel as the world vowed to end neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) by 2030. This is the roadmap that our government and its partners need to work on together to end the disease in the country. In fact, South Sudan, which used to be the most Guinea worm-endemic territory in the world, reported no cases in 2017, down from 20,582 at the outset of the campaign in 2006. This was possible because the partners were very strong, and they were working together, so this spirit needs to continue to eradicate Guinea worm completely from the country.
Despite the fact that there are serious health issues facing the country, such as COVID-19, HIV/AIDS and other issues, the leaders and health partners can still do a lot to stop the Guinea disease to achieve the 2030 roadmap. The recurrence of Guinea disease in the country, on the other hand, sends the message that the fight had been neglected by the health partners, which could have been exacerbated by a variety of factors, including the war.
With the outbreak of COVID-19, the Guinea worm disease seems to have become a tropically neglected disease as the world tends to focus more on the global pandemic disease. Much as there are other health challenges, the world should not forget the fight against the Guinea worm.
According to the World Health Organisation, Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) are infectious parasitic and bacterial diseases that affect over 1 billion people in the world’s poorest and most marginalised communities. An estimated 200,000 deaths are reported every year worldwide, and South Sudan is not excluded.
The countries in sub-Saharan Africa need to be supported to eliminate parasitic worm infections.