The Ministry of Health and Population has unveiled its strategy to combat meningitis by 2030, aiming to raise awareness about meningitis, exchange knowledge, and provide treatment following the latest therapeutic protocols.

Dr. Hamed Abdel Ghaffar, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Population, stated: We strive to provide all means of detection, diagnosis, and treatment, while reviewing prevention and control efforts, focusing on implementing the WHO roadmap to eliminate meningitis by 2030.

Dr. Hossam Abdel Ghaffar, the official spokesperson for the Ministry, explained that the Preventive Medicine and Public Health sector offers comprehensive preventive services to control the disease through a diverse vaccination system and surveillance mechanisms in Egypt. He added that Egypt has successfully controlled the disease since 1989, noting that the disease surveillance plan includes 13 hospitals where cases are monitored and samples analyzed using PCR technology.

Dr. Radi Hammad, head of the Preventive Medicine and Public Health sector, emphasized the ministry’s commitment to developing the skills and capabilities of medical sector staff by holding scientific sessions to keep up with the latest global developments and practices, positively impacting community health and disease prevention. He pointed to Egypt’s achievements in combating meningitis according to an effective strategy aligned with the global roadmap to eliminate epidemics by 2030.

He added that the incidence rate of the disease in Egypt dropped in 2024 to 0.02 cases per 100,000 population, thanks to the preventive policies followed by the Ministry of Health and Population, clarifying that the global epidemic threshold or average incidence is 5 cases per 100,000 population.

Dr. Hisham Magdy, head of the Central Public Health Administration, said that efforts to combat meningitis and ensure the most effective response include updating guidelines and surveillance strategies. He pointed out the inclusion of the Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine in February 2014 within the pentavalent vaccine for ages 2, 4, and 6 months, maintaining a coverage rate of no less than 95%, and taking immediate preventive measures for any detected case.

Dr. Baher El-Dosouky, General Director of the General Administration for Infectious Disease Control, said that more than 7 million annual doses of the bivalent meningitis vaccine have been provided to vaccinate school students (kindergarten, first grade primary, first grade preparatory, and first grade secondary), in addition to nearly 600,000 annual doses of the quadrivalent conjugate vaccine for pilgrims, Umrah performers, and travelers to endemic countries.

He noted that the “African Meningitis Belt” threatened 26 countries with a population of nearly 500 million, where the risk from meningococcal serogroup A accounted for 80 to 85% of cases before the conjugate vaccine was provided through large-scale preventive campaigns starting in 2010. He added that the WHO continues to cooperate with the ministry to update the national framework for combating meningitis in line with the global roadmap to eliminate the disease by 2030.