NTD Elimination Dossiers

Supporting Countries to Document and Validate Elimination Milestones

Achieving elimination targets is a major public health milestone. Formal recognition by WHO requires the preparation and submission of an elimination dossier—a comprehensive document that demonstrates a country has met defined epidemiological thresholds and established systems to sustain those gains.

An elimination dossier compiles:

• Evidence of reaching required epidemiological criteria
• Description of national strategies and monitoring systems
• Documentation of partnerships and governance mechanisms
• Safeguards to prevent recrudescence
• Sustainability within strengthened health systems

WHO recommends that countries begin preparing their dossiers early, progressively updating them as programmes mature and milestones are reached.

Why Dossier Preparation Matters

The dossier process strengthens more than validation—it strengthens systems. It:

• Promotes country ownership of elimination achievements
• Consolidates national data and surveillance systems
• Enhances accountability and transparency
• Ensures sustainability beyond mass drug administration
• Aligns national progress with WHO normative guidance

In several settings, dossier preparation has relied heavily on external technical partners. ESPEN’s approach prioritizes country-led, technically robust, and sustainable dossier development processes.

ESPEN’s Role

ESPEN supports Member States across the WHO African Region to:

• Establish national dossier preparation committees
• Build technical capacity for evidence compilation
• Align data with WHO validation requirements
• Review draft dossiers prior to formal submission
• Strengthen coordination across programmes and partners

Support is tailored to each disease area and aligned with WHO guidance and regional elimination timelines.

Moving from Milestone to Validation

As more countries approach elimination thresholds, attention shifts from implementation to documentation, verification, and sustainability. Early and structured dossier preparation ensures a smoother submission process and strengthens long-term health system resilience.

Elimination is not only about reaching the threshold — it is about documenting, validating, and sustaining the achievement.