Neglected Tropical Diseases Regional Expert Group Meeting
1 June 2012 / Manila, Philippines
Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is endemic in 22 countries and areas of the Western Pacific Region. The Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis has set its goal for 2020. Considerable progress has been achieved in most LF endemic countries in the Region. China, the Republic of Korea and Solomon Islands were verified by WHO as having eliminated lymphatic filariasis in 2007, 2008 and 2011, respectively. Niue and Tonga have completed all post-mass drug administration surveillance surveys and lymphatic filariasis elimination is expected to be verified in 2013.
NTD programmes in the Western Pacific are reviewed periodically and technically supported by the Regional Programme Review Group (RPRG), a body of 10 independent experts and two NTD national programme managers that convenes once a year with WHO as the secretariat. As the tasks of the RPRG include technical support for monitoring and evaluation surveys as well as review of countries' dossiers for verification of elimination, all members of the NTD RPRG are invited to also participate in this training workshop.
Objectives of the NTD Regional Expert Group Meeting are:
- to assist WHO in addressing key NTD technical and strategic issues;
- to review country requests for NTD drug donations;
- to provide specific recommendations for each LF-endemic country on issues related to monitoring and evaluation; and
- to provide advice on transitioning to a regional NTD programme review group.