ADDIS ABABA – The Ethiopian Public Health Institution (EPHI) urged stakeholders to consolidate efforts to realize Guinea Worm (GW) free Ethiopia. Institute Director General Dr. Eba Abate said that Ethiopia is making considerable efforts to eradicated GW disease. And the effort has borne fruits. However, to fully eradicate it and certified the country as free of guinea-worm disease (dracunculiasis) cases, coordinated efforts of stakes is vital.
The Director General noted that the Institute has established its structure up to woreda levels to strengthen public health management efforts. “We need stakes to work with the EPHI. The Institute has success stories in meeting MDGs and SDGS in the health sector.
If all pertinent bodies work in coordination, Ethiopia will be certified in a short period of time as it is in the right track to report zero guinea worm cases.” According to him, a country endemic for dracunculiasis reporting zero indigenous cases over a complete calendar year is deemed to have prevented transmission of guineaworm disease and is classified as being in the precertification phase.
To be declared free of dracunculiasis, a country that has stopped transmission of the disease must have reported zero indigenous cases through active surveillance for at least three consecutive years, as he elaborated. According to him, Ethiopian guinea worm eradication program has been running for the last 25 years reducing huge figure to zero and no human case reported for a solid year.
However, the country should have been eradicated it many years ago. And Ethiopia is still one of the four Africa nations not free from GW, he said. “To change the reality health, investment, social affair as well Water Development Bureau of the States and development partners should show strengthen efforts than ever before,” he noted.
According to him, unless national program keeping on in materializing intensified interventions, including stringent surveillance, greater promotion of cash rewards, rapid response to rumors of infections, and aggressive treatment of potentially contaminated water sources, that resulted in zero human cases in 2018 could be reversed .
Gambella State Health Bureau Head Kan Gatluak for his part said taht the new leadership is showing high-level of political commitment in bolstering the eradication campaign. “We know that lack of coordination was the major problem.” To abate the challenges new Council in charge of supervising the progress has become operational. Investors who are operating in the State are working in line with the investment law of the nation. “As Health Bureau we will work on it. The Council in its part should discharge its responsibility accordingly,” Kan remarked.
Herald March 6/2019
BY MENGISTEAB TESHOME
