Helen Keller International Awarded Certificate of Appreciation by Cameroon’s Ministry of Health

Yaoundé, Cameroon, January 18 th, 2008 - The Ministry of Health (MoH) in Cameroon awarded Helen Keller International (HKI) a Certificate of Appreciation and Satisfaction in recognition of the organization’s contribution to the fight against onchocerciasis (“river blindness”) in the country. The award ceremony coincided with the 20 th anniversary of Merck’s & Co, Inc.’s Mectizan® Donation Program (MDP), widely considered one of the most successful public-private health collaborations in the world. Mectizan®, also known by its generic name ivermectin, halts the progression of the disease towards blindness.

Dr. André Mama Fouda, Minister of Health, expressed his appreciation by stating that “ thanks to your technical and financial engagement, the populations are relieved of the burden of this disease and can thus contribute to the economic and social development of our country”.

HKI has been working in Cameroon’s highly onchoceriasis-endemic regions since 1992. Onchoceriasis is transmitted through the bite of the black fly. It is the second leading cause of blindness in the world and causes intense itching and debilitating skin lesions. The impact of this disease reaches beyond the physical to social stigmas, hindered work abilities, lowered school attendance, and stifled economic growth for the community and country as a whole. An annual dose of Mectizan® is effective in containing the spread of the disease for up to 12 months.

In 1987, Merck & Co., Inc. pledged to donate Mectizan® to all who needed it, for as long as needed. HKI started to develop methods to distribute the drug to treat those in endemic areas, many of which were remote. HKI’s work in Cameroon with partners led to the development of Community Directed Treatment with Ivermectin (CDTI), training volunteer networks of community health workers to distribute annual doses of the drug. HKI builds capacity of health staff and encourages communities to take responsibility for their health by providing them with training, information and education about preventing and treating the disease and guidance in distributing Mectizan®.

Over the last decade, HKI’s has faced numerous challenges in its efforts to control onchocerciasis, including complications caused by the co-endemicity of Loa loa in several project areas in Cameroon. HKI took a leadership role in implementing evidence-based medical recommendations, developed by the MDP and the African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control, for the safe distribution of Mectizan®. The project developed to administer Mectizan® in co-endemic areas to become a model for other organizations to follow.

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