National Strategic Plan for Leprosy, 2022–2025 Timor-Leste

Within the last decade, Timor-Leste has experienced a significant

decline in the burden of leprosy. However, leprosy remains a public health problem with a momentous burden among affected and at-risk populations. The National Strategic Plan (NSP) 2022-2025 aims to accomplish leprosy elimination by adhering to the WHO global leprosy strategy 2021-2030, which was developed through a consultative process with all major stakeholders and reflects these epidemiological changes.

The WHO has been providing immense technical support to NLEP in Timor-Leste. WHO has been closely associated with the Ministry of Health in revising this fourth edition of the NSP for 2022-2025 by conducting a SWOT analysis aligned with the review of the leprosy programme for 2015-2019. It also contributed substantially to developing the updated NSP 2022-2025 with a cost plan. The strategy is aligned with broader health trends in Timor-Leste. The NSP includes the standardised practises for new case identification, response management, treatment completion, disability case management, and stigma and prejudice prevention. Timor-Leste is currently anticipated to evolve from infection control to zero infection or transmission by 2030. The goal may be fulfilled through the implementation of NSP and leprosy guidelines, particularly in the remaining high-endemic municipasties.

Although there is a great deal of efforts to eliminate leprosy, there is still room for improving - 1) Overall, treatment completion rates are low; 2) there is a lack of information in a few municipalities; and 3) in areas with a high leprosy burden, municipalities must be focused on all aspects of the national plan.