Ghana Declares Victory Over Dangerous Disease

During a trip to Ghana in the 1980s, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter first saw how serious a problem guinea worm disease was to the people of that country. Since then, President Carter has dedicated himself to eradicating the sickness. On July 28th, after 23 years of hard work, Ghana declared victory as the guinea worm was officially declared eradicated in the country.

Ghana is one of only a handful of countries where the parasitic disease was still present. When the Carter Center started eradication efforts in Africa and Asia in 1984, there were an estimated 3.5 million cases. The Carter Center hopes to completely eradicate the disease, as there are currently fewer than 804 reported cases left in South Sudan and pockets of Mali and Ethiopia.

JT has had the honor to assist President Carter in his mission. In February 2007, JT provided advance and event management services to support the Center’s 11-day, four-country Africa trip to Ghana, Sudan, Ethiopia and Nigeria to highlight its 25-year history of pursuing an aggressive health care agenda. Trip participants included senior Carter Center officials and staff, donors and partners, representatives of major media outlets (including The New York Times, Chicago Tribune and Reuters) and a documentary film crew. The group traveled to each country’s capital city to meet with heads of state, government leaders, health ministers and U.S. ambassadors. They also participated in day trips to remote villages to experience firsthand the Center’s accomplishments in addressing diseases. Specifically, while in Ghana, the focus of the visit was to check in on the Carter Center team’s efforts to eradicate guinea worm.

In addition, in February 2010, JT provided trip logistic support to President Carter on his trip to southern Sudan to monitor the Center’s guinea worm eradication programs, including visits to local clinics and villages, and meetings with government officials.

This video by the Carter Center explains the guinea worm disease and how to try to eradicate it. The video also includes segments from JT’s trip to Ghana.

Here are photos of the water source in Tamale, Ghana, the water filtering mechanisms and people being treated for guinea worm outbreaks. (Warning, some photos feature prominent details of the disease.)

News Story: More information about the eradication announcement in Ghana.