WHO focuses on bilharzia

The World Health Organization (WHO) is holding a workshop in Niamey, Niger, on the control and eradication of Schistomiasis, commonly known as bilharzia. The workshop, which started on Monday and ends on 31 January, focuses on new and effective ways of treating the disease, including vaccines and therapies. Participants come from Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Senegal, Togo and host country Niger, which are all scheduled to develop their own national programmes to roll back bilharzia, WHO said on Monday. Bilharzia, a parasitic disease that leads to chronic ill health, is caused by flatworms and exists in two forms, an intestinal strain and a urinary strain. People most vulnerable to bilharzia are those working or living in water-infested areas, including fishermen, rice farmers and dam workers. About 165 million out of the 200 million people affected worldwide live in sub-Saharan Africa, the agency said.