A World Health Organization led alliance, launched in 1996 and known as GET2020, that worked to eliminate trachoma as a public health problem worldwide by the year 2020 through national health ministries implementing the SAFE strategy of surgery, antibiotics, facial cleanliness and environmental improvement. The alliance supported endemic countries with epidemiological surveys, monitoring and resource mobilization, aiming to bring the rate of active trachomatous inflammation below 5 percent in every formerly endemic district. Global elimination by 2020 was not reached, though many individual countries were validated as having eliminated the disease during the campaign, and the World Health Organization has continued the effort under a revised 2030 target.
Facts
Program StatusContinuing under WHO leadership; eight countries were validated as having eliminated trachoma as a public health problem since 2011, though global elimination was not achieved by the original 2020 target 1 Sponsoring BodyWorld Health Organization 1 Target PopulationYoung children in trachoma-endemic communities, who carry the main reservoir of infection 1 Health GoalSupport country implementation of the SAFE strategy (surgery, antibiotics, facial cleanliness, environmental improvement) toward eliminating trachoma as a public health problem 1 Geographic ScopeTrachoma remains endemic in 44 countries worldwide, the alliance's implementation area 1 Measured ResultsGlobal population at risk of trachoma fell from 1.5 billion in 2002 to just over 142 million in 2019, a 91 percent reduction 1 Classification
Program Kind Connections
Associated With
WHO-led global trachoma elimination strategy
Delivers Practice
Entity-backed identity for the program-kind enum value this public health program already carries, resolved to a health practice by an explicit value-to-entity map (phase 3 bucket conversion, docs\design_entity_backed_browse_buckets_20260928.md). The program-kind fact itself stays on the program unchanged.
Sources
1. WHO: Eliminating Trachoma, Sustained Progress (2019)
World Health OrganizationWHO news item, 27 June 2019, GET2020 founding sentence (year)
In 1996, WHO launched GET2020, and with other partners in the Alliance, supports country implementation of the SAFE strategy and strengthening of national capacity for epidemiological assessment, monitoring, surveillance, project evaluation and resource mobilization.
WHO news item, 27 June 2019, GET2020 founding sentence (name)
In 1996, WHO launched GET2020, and with other partners in the Alliance, supports country implementation of the SAFE strategy and strengthening of national capacity for epidemiological assessment, monitoring, surveillance, project evaluation and resource mobilization.
WHO news item, 27 June 2019, GET2020 founding sentence (sponsor)
In 1996, WHO launched GET2020, and with other partners in the Alliance, supports country implementation of the SAFE strategy and strengthening of national capacity for epidemiological assessment, monitoring, surveillance, project evaluation and resource mobilization.
WHO news item, 27 June 2019, endemic-countries paragraph
Trachoma remains endemic in 44 countries and has blinded or visually impaired around 1.9 million people worldwide.
WHO news item, 27 June 2019, GET2020 founding sentence (strategy)
In 1996, WHO launched GET2020, and with other partners in the Alliance, supports country implementation of the SAFE strategy and strengthening of national capacity for epidemiological assessment, monitoring, surveillance, project evaluation and resource mobilization.
WHO news item, 27 June 2019, transmission paragraph
Transmission occurs through contact with infective discharges from the eyes and nose, particularly in young children who harbour the main reservoir of infection.
WHO news item, 27 June 2019, progress-figures paragraph
The number of people at risk of trachoma, the world's leading infectious cause of blindness, has fallen from 1.5 billion in 2002 to just over 142 million in 2019, a reduction of 91%.
WHO news item, 27 June 2019, country-validation paragraph
Since 2011, eight countries have been validated by WHO as having eliminated trachoma as a public health problem.
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