On the occasion of World Leprosy Day, observed on January 25, the World Health Organization has reaffirmed its commitment to eliminating leprosy worldwide, emphasizing the importance of sustained partnerships, free access to treatment, and continued efforts to tackle stigma. Global progress has been steady but uneven. In 2024, data submitted to WHO showed that 55 of 188 reporting countries, areas, or territories recorded zero new cases of leprosy.
Despite this encouraging trend, leprosy remains a public health concern, with 172,717 new cases detected and reported globally in the same year. These numbers underscore both the success of elimination strategies and the work still ahead. A cornerstone of global leprosy control has been universal access to multidrug therapy, provided free of cost to patients worldwide for more than two decades through collaboration between WHO and a Swiss…
