Global Leprosy Strategy 2016–2020. Operational Manual

Purpose of the Operational Manual

The Operational Manual is a companion document to the “Global Leprosy Strategy 2016–2020, Accelerating towards a leprosy freeworld”, which went through an extensive process of review and revisions based on suggestions from a wide range of experts, national programme managers and partners. While the strategy presents an overview of the ethics and guiding principles, the Operational Manual provides suggestions for the implementation of activities adapted to local settings. Following the publication of this manual, a stand-alone guide on how to monitor the strategy’s implementation and, in general, leprosy programmes activities will be produced. This Operational Manual has two important functions:

• To define and explain targets, terms, concepts and activities mentioned in the Global Leprosy Strategy; and
• To provide guidance on how the Global Leprosy Strategy can be implemented in the context of a national programme.

The manual also indicates the scope for global and regional interventions.
Because of its global scope, the Operational Manual remains a generic guidance document and may not necessarily give country-tailored direction and guidance on every aspect of leprosy elimination. However, it is intended that national programme managers should be able to adapt suggested actions to their countries’ realities.