We Can Soon Wave Goodbye to This Blinding Disease

Thanks to steady efforts from local authorities, Togo was able to become the third African country to reach the critical milestone of getting rid of trachoma as a public health problem, making it the only country that effectively got rid of no less than four Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD).

A grand total of 12 countries eliminated trachoma as a public health problem. WHO wishes to eliminate trachoma from the NTD’s list by 2030, and Togo’s success is a step in the right direction towards achieving this goal.

The validation came after decades of trachoma control activities, starting in 1989 when the Ministry of Health, Public Hygiene, and Universal Access to Care established the National Prevention of Blindness Programme. Trachoma, caused by the Chlamydia trachomatis, is the leading infectious root of blindness. Ghana and Gambia precede Togo by having had the disease under control in 2018 and 2021 respectively. Authorities achieved their goal by running awareness-raising campaigns that stress the importance of personal hygiene and facial cleanliness in the fight against trachoma and improving significantly the availability of safe water and better sanitation.