Fons, mayors and district officers of the Northwest Region have been called upon to sensitize their various communities on the need to eradicate neglected tropical diseases. The call was made recently in Bamenda to various actors in the health sector during a one day advocacy meeting on the fight against neglected tropical diseases.

Speaking at the meeting, the representative of the delegate of Public Health, Dr. Tanyong Gladys, said onchocerciases, lymphatic filariasia and intestinal worms have hit the Northwest region and so the meeting was aimed at raising awareness and planning for the activities that will be implemented during the year.

She noted that the advocacy meeting would be organized at the divisional and sub-divisional levels. After that, community-directed distributors would be trained by the health personnel in the entire district, she said, insisting that such distributors are not employed by the government but are volunteers and so need motivation from the community.