Global Leprosy Strategy 2016–2020. Monitoring and Evaluation Guide

There has been considerable progress in leprosy control ever since multidrug therapy (MDT) was introduced more than three decades ago. Strong political commitment, sound strategies and robust partnerships have contributed to a significant impact in terms of reduction in leprosy burden. While this represents good news for leprosy workers, the public and policy-makers, what is of common concern, is the slow decline in the new case detection in the last 10 years. Besides, the global target of one-third reduction in new cases with grade-2 disability (G2D) set by the Enhanced Global Strategy for Further Reducing the Diseases Burden due to Leprosy, 2011–2015 has missed the timeline, prompting the launch by the World Health Organization (WHO) of a more comprehensive strategy which is the Global Leprosy Strategy 2016–2020 “Accelerating towards a leprosy-free world”. This strategy was developed around three pillars that address governance, medical and social aspects of leprosy.