Health Programs

Stopping Guinea Worm Transmission:  Uganda

Uganda was one of four countries recognized Nov. 15, 2006, during a special ceremony at The Carter Center for stopping Guinea worm transmission for a 12-month period.  Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter presented awards to Uganda, Benin, Central African Republic, and Mauritania.

Uganda's began its nationwide search for cases of Guinea worm disease in 1991 and completed it in 1992, when the country reported 126,639 cases from 2,677 endemic villages. Interventions against transmission began to be implemented in 1993 and transmission from the last known endemic village was stopped in July 2003.

Uganda Guinea Worm Eradication Program Overview

Back from the brink of civil war, Uganda is victorious against Guinea Worm
In the past 20 years, Uganda has brought itself back from the brink of civil war and economic disaster by committing itself to the improvement of peace and health. Today, some of the poorest people in Uganda no longer suffer from the transmission of a debilitating parasitic infection called Guinea worm disease which once affected hundreds of thousands of people a year in more than 2,600 villages. Invited by the Ugandan government, The Carter Center began assisting the Country's Guinea worm eradication program in 1991 by posting a resident technical advisor in the Ministry of Health to make possible the nationwide village by village survey for cases of Guinea worm disease and to buttress the national Guinea worm eradication program secretariat. The assistance provided by The Carter Center was part of a larger international effort led by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to wipe out the disease forever. Transmitted through stagnant drinking water, Guinea worm is particularly devastating because it is endemic to the poorest and most forgotten communities of the world.

In many of Uganda's districts, access to safe water has been a priority issue. Because there are no vaccines or medicines to prevent or cure Guinea worm disease, nylon filters to strain out the infected larvae from drinking water must be used at all times to stop transmission of the disease.  But Uganda's hard work has paid off.  Since July 2003, Uganda has not reported a single indigenous case of Guinea worm disease. However, Uganda and other nations bordering the previously war-torn Sudan will continue to be at risk until Guinea worm disease is eliminated from Sudan. The Carter Center remains committed to building hope and stopping the spread of Guinea worm disease in Uganda and the rest of the world.

Highlights on the campaign to eradicate Guinea worm in Uganda and beyond:

• In the past 20 years, Uganda has brought itself back from the brink of civil war and economic disaster.
• Once ranked as the third-most endemic country in the world, Uganda's swift success in eliminating the disease will likely remain unmatched.
• Invited by the Ugandan government, The Carter Center began working in 1991 with the Ministry of Health to establish one of the first African Guinea worm eradication programs as part of a larger international effort led by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, to wipe out the disease forever.
• Guinea worm is a parasitic infection transmitted through stagnant drinking water so old it has been mentioned in ancient Egyptian medical texts.
• It is a very painful and debilitating disease, endemic to the poorest and most forgotten communities of the world.
• In Uganda, Guinea worm disease once affected hundreds of thousands of people a year in more than 2,600 villages.
• The program started to achieve outstanding results under the direction of Dr. Rwakimari, national coordinator for the Guinea worm eradication program.
• Since July 2003, disease transmission in the nation has been stopped.
• Disease transmission has been stopped in 11 of the other 20 endemic countries since the campaign to eradicate Guinea worm began in 1986.
• With no vaccine or medicine for the affliction, Guinea worm will be the first disease eradicated solely through the use of health education and prevention methods such as the use of cloth water filters.
• Success has been due in large part to the commitment of volunteers, health workers, and the Ministry of Health to eradicate the disease, even to the point of the national program offering cash rewards in some areas to encourage the reporting of cases.
• Through these efforts and the commitment of the Uganda Ministry of Health, the suffering caused by this debilitating disease has been averted.
• Families, communities, and even Uganda's national economy will benefit from more people returning to work and more children able to attend school.

The Carter Center is a not-for-profit organization founded by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, and works to wage peace, fight disease, and build hope around the world.