Uganda hosted the 3rd annual East Africa NTD and trachoma cross-border partnership meeting, July 10-11, 2017 at the Fairway Hotel, Kampala.  Objectives of the meeting included reviewing progress made on 2016 recommendations; discussing strategies for tackling common and cross-border challenges, and recommendations for collaborative activities in the following year. During the meeting, Ministry of Health representatives (MOH) from six of the seven East African countries, Eritrea, Kenya, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, as well as representatives from over 10 international non-governmental organizations (NGO) discussed issues critical to trachoma control and elimination in East Africa. Each of the six countries presented on program updates, cross-border challenges and opportunities for collaboration.

As national programs achieve significant gains in trachoma elimination, it has become increasingly important to coordinate, and align efforts within each endemic country and across common borders. The regional partnership meeting provides a forum for national program managers and district-level health managers to learn from each other, build relationships, and engage across borders in joint planning and program delivery.