In these periods of rain, Wafac-Africa initiates a public awareness campaign in order to inform the populations on the need for having adequate behaviors in the endemic zones. Thus, the villages of the departments below were identified.
High Level Meeting on Buruli Ulcer
African Summit on Neglected Tropical Diseases
With the support of WHO and the Beninese government, Wafac-Africa organized the African Summit on the Neglected Tropical Diseases in Cotonou from March 30 to April 3, 2009. The personalities that were at this high level meeting were:
The Heads of State of Benin and Togo, the Vice-President of Gabon representing the President of the Republic of Gabon, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ivory Coast representing the President of Ivory Coast, the Special Counseler of the President of the Republic of Mali representing the President of the Republic of Mali, the WHO Africa Director, the presidents of the Raoul Follereau Foundations of France and Luxemburg and the Public Health Ministers of the following countries: Benin, Ivory Coast, Togo, Ghana, Nigeria and Congo.
Were also present the specialists and medical physicians in the field of Buruli Ulcer and Neglected Tropical Diseases in general.
With this high level meeting, a declaration on the Buruli Ulcer known as Declaration of Cotonou was signed by the various Heads of States present. They thus showed their agreement to facilitate the fight against this affection by taking adequate measures:
- Mobilize additional resources for the fight against Buruli Ulcer;
- Promote the socio economic reintegration of the people affected by the disease;
- Guarantee to the people affected by the Buruli Ulcer a free access or at a reduced cost to the specific antibiotic treatment, surgery and readjustment;
- Reinforce the capacities of the national laboratories;
- Intensify, on all the levels, education on the Buruli Ulcer;
- Ensure the tracking of the cases at an early stage of the disease in order to reduce the frequency of the incapacities;
- Support research by active international cooperation...
