On September 21, 2023, at the 78th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the Government of Canada announced $15 million to eliminate trachoma as a public health problem in the Americas as part of its aim to accelerate progress and support ambitious international action on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Government of Canada in partnership with the Pan American Health Organization (Regional Office of the World Health Organization for the Americas), supports this initiative to improve the health of communities, women, and children, through the elimination of trachoma as a public health problem in 10 prioritized countries of the Americas (Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela). Trachoma (one of 20 neglected tropical diseases or NTDs) disproportionately affects children and women; globally, an estimated 125 million people live in areas at risk of vision loss due to trachoma.
The Canadian Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases also welcomed this new investment as an important step towards ending the neglect of NTDs and reaching the World Health Organization’s 2030 NTD Roadmap goals. Dr. Alison Krentel, Chair of the Canadian Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases, remarked, “This is an exciting announcement from Canada. As a network, we are delighted to see this significant investment in trachoma to help these 10 countries as well as the Region reach the ultimate goal of elimination of trachoma as a public health problem. This will save millions of boys and girls, women, and men from the risk of blindness.”
With the help of this significant investment by the Canadian government, over 5.6 million people will be free from the risk of visual impairment or blindness due to trachoma, a leading cause of infectious blindness globally, and a further 4 million people will receive the support needed to prevent trachoma infection in the future.
Link to the full press release: Canada makes landmark investment to put an end to blindness due to trachoma in the Americas (einpresswire.com)
For more information about the announcement: https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/backgrounders/2023/09/21/canada-supports-strong-ambitious-international-action-78th-session
Link to the PAHO press release: https://bit.ly/PAHOCANENDtrachoma
To learn more about the Canadian Network for NTDs, please visit : https://cnntd.org/
