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POLICY BRIEF article

Front. Trop. Dis
Sec. Neglected Tropical Diseases
Volume 5 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fitd.2024.1453965
This article is part of the Research Topic Foodborne Zoonotic Parasites and Parasitoses View all articles

Effective and sustainable prevention and control of pork tapeworm diseases in humans and pigs in Tanzania: A policy brief

Provisionally accepted
Helena A. Ngowi Helena A. Ngowi 1*George Makingi George Makingi 1Fredy Mlowe Fredy Mlowe 1Christina Wilson Christina Wilson 1Flora Kajuna Flora Kajuna 1Mwemezi Kabululu Mwemezi Kabululu 2Ayubu Churi Ayubu Churi 1Chacha Nyangi Chacha Nyangi 3Mary-Winnie Nanyaro Mary-Winnie Nanyaro 4Innocent Melkiory Innocent Melkiory 1Cosmas Nonga Cosmas Nonga 1Shanel Matembo Shanel Matembo 1Bernard James Ngowi Bernard James Ngowi 4Fatna Kivava Fatna Kivava 1Christina Kitundu Christina Kitundu 1Antony Nyerere Antony Nyerere 1Ernatus Mkupasi Ernatus Mkupasi 1
  • 1 Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania
  • 2 Tanzania Livestock Research Institute (TALIRI), Arusha, Arusha, Tanzania
  • 3 Mbeya University of Science and Technology, Mbeya, Tanzania
  • 4 National Institute for Medical Research, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Pork tapeworm (Taenia solium) is a parasite that causes serious diseases in humans and pigs. The parasite causes epilepsy in humans and is estimated to be responsible for approximately 212 deaths per year. The parasite costs Tanzanian society approximately USD 8 million annually due to costs for management of epilepsy caused by the parasite (USD 5 million) and losses due to condemnation of infected pork (USD 3 million). Pork tapeworm diseases are currently not a control and prevention priority in Tanzania, and collaborative efforts among relevant sectors at various levels are limited. This policy brief recommends a One Health approach for effective and sustainable control of the pork tapeworm diseases. It puts forward fourteen actionable recommendations for the country to achieve this goal.

    Keywords: policy engagement, Neglected zoonoses, elimination, one-health, Taenia solium, Tanzania

    Received: 24 Jun 2024; Accepted: 18 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Ngowi, Makingi, Mlowe, Wilson, Kajuna, Kabululu, Churi, Nyangi, Nanyaro, Melkiory, Nonga, Matembo, Ngowi, Kivava, Kitundu, Nyerere and Mkupasi. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Helena A. Ngowi, Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.