Global Fight Against Trachoma Hits Milestone as Data-Driven Health Strategies Slash Risk by 94%

WHO reports people needing interventions for world’s leading infectious cause of blindness fall below 100 million for the first time.

The global effort to eliminate trachoma, the world’s leading infectious cause of blindness, has reached a historic turning point: the number of people requiring interventions has dropped below 100 million for the first time since records began, according to new data released by the World Health Organization (WHO).

From an estimated 1.5 billion people at risk in 2002, the figure has fallen to 97.1 million as of November 2025 — a 94% reduction driven by coordinated public-health action, digital disease mapping, and sustained international partnerships.

“This milestone demonstrates how strong country leadership, data, and consistent implementation can deliver impact at global scale,” said Dr Daniel Ngamije Madandi, Director of WHO’s Department of Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases.

SAFE Strategy: A Scalable Public Health Model

Progress has been achieved through the WHO-endorsed SAFE strategy:

• Surgery to treat advanced disease

• Antibiotics to clear infection

• Facial cleanliness

• Environmental improvement

The approach combines clinical interventions with behavioural change and infrastructure improvements, making it both adaptable and scalable across diverse settings.

WHO reaffirmed its commitment to supporting countries to achieve global elimination of trachoma as a public health problem by 2030.

Data, Digital Tools and Smart Surveys Power Progress

Central to the success has been the use of large-scale digital data collection and analysis.

The Global Trachoma Mapping Project (GTMP) — the largest infectious disease survey effort ever conducted — collected data from 2.6 million people across 29 countries between 2012 and 2016, using smartphones for real-time data capture, validation and analysis.

This work continues through Tropical Data, which has since supported:

• Over 4,000 surveys

• Across 55 countries

• Examining more than 13.1 million people

Since 2012, an average of one person has been examined for trachoma every 25 seconds, enabling precise targeting of interventions and evidence-based validation of elimination.

Partnerships and Supply-Chain Innovation

Global progress has been supported by close collaboration between governments, NGOs, academic institutions and donors — many coordinated through the International Coalition for Trachoma Control (ICTC).

A critical enabler has been the donation of over 1.1 billion doses of azithromycin by Pfizer, delivered through the International Trachoma Initiative (ITI), strengthening both treatment coverage and community health systems.

“The trachoma community is built on data and partnerships,” said Michaela Kelly, Chair of ICTC. “That foundation has enabled SAFE to scale and deliver extraordinary results.”

Elimination Momentum — But the Final Mile Remains

With the recent validation of Egypt and Fiji, 27 countries have now been certified by WHO as having eliminated trachoma as a public health problem — including at least one country in every endemic region.

However, WHO and partners warn that nearly 100 million people remain at risk, and an estimated US$300 million is still needed to close funding gaps for surgery, antibiotics, surveys and priority research.

Call to Action: Scaling Data-Driven Elimination

For tech innovators, digital health platforms, data scientists and funders, trachoma elimination offers a proven blueprint for:

• Smartphone-based disease surveillance

• Community-level data collection at scale

• Integrated delivery of health, water and sanitation interventions

• Evidence-driven validation of disease elimination

As efforts align with Sustainable Development Goal 3.3 and the NTD Road Map 2021–2030, WHO and partners are calling for renewed investment and early adoption of digital, logistical and analytical tools to finish the job.

“Behind every milestone are millions of individual stories of people whose sight has been protected,” said PJ Hooper, Director of ITI. “The progress is real — but the final push matters most.”