Buwenge, 26th November 2014:-  The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust Initiative to support trachoma elimination in Uganda was launched in Buwenge at Kagoma Primary School Grounds. The Chief Guest, Hon. Elioda Tumwesigye said that the most important aspect of dealing with trachoma was to first agree on its magnitude. He said, “Trachoma is more in women and children than in men. We need to educate and sensitize society especially women because they’re responsible for sanitation and good hygiene at home.”  He further called upon religious leaders who have a huge impact on society to also join in on the cause to eliminate Trachoma.

Hon. Dr. Tumwesigye also appreciated the interventions so far implemented and said that government is ready to collaborate with partners to eliminate blinding trachoma from Uganda by 2020. The Minister launched the Trachoma Action Plan, 2014-2018 that is aligned to WHO global plan for eliminating Trachoma by 2020. 

The Chief Executive Officer of Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust, Dr. Astrid Bonfield noted that eliminating trachoma would be a good achievement for the Trust.  She noted that there are only five years to achieve the global target of eliminating Trachoma by 2020. She further said that the only way to achieve this was to work as a team. “We will not be judged by what we say, but by what we do in five years time,” she said.

The WHO Country Representative Dr. Wondimagegnehu Alemu  said that Trachoma is the leading cause of preventable blindness that blinds a person every fifteen minutes. He reiterated that The International Trachoma Initiative in collaboration with WHO has set the goal of elimination of Trachoma by 2020 using the SAFE strategy.

The WHO SAFE strategy is a combination of Surgery to correct Trachoma Trichiasis, Antibiotic treatment with Azithromycin for the acute infection; Facial cleanliness promotion to prevent re-infection of oneself and transmission to others, and Environmental improvements; access to clean water and good sanitation. “As a major stakeholder, WHO is committed to supporting the implementation of the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust Initiative in Uganda”, he said.

The World Health Organization leads an international alliance of interested parties to work for the global elimination of trachoma, the Alliance for Global Elimination of Trachoma by the year 2020 (GET 2020). Of the 229 million people living in trachoma endemic districts, globally, about 10.8 million of them live in Uganda. The disease robs people of their sight as repeated infection turns eyelashes inwards, scraping the cornea and eventually causing irreversible blindness. Women who are considered the traditional caretakers of the home, are almost twice as likely as men to develop blinding trachoma.

In Uganda, the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust Trachoma Initiative in Uganda will support seven districts in Karamoja and 10 districts in Busoga region. Surgery will be provided to 38,834 people with advanced stages of blinding trachoma. Community health messages will also be  used to sensitize the masses on effective hygiene and sanitation practices.  The program will be coordinated by the Carter Center and implemented by Sight savers and Christian Blind Mission (CBM) as partners.

The function  brought together, government, development partners, district leaders, CSOs and the media. All Partners signed a commitment to implement the Trachoma Elimination Action Plan.

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For more information, please contact:

Mwebembezi Edmond, Public Information Officer
World Health Organization
Plot 60, Prince Charles Drive, Kololo
Tel. +256 313 335500
Cell: +256 782 962674

Twitter: @who_ug