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Partners in the eradication of guinea worm in Ghana have expressed optimism that the country will be able to break the transmission of the disease by the end of this year. This follows significant progress made since the beginning of the eradication programme in 1989.Last year, 501 cases were reported, representing an 85 per cent drop over the 2007 case load of 3,358 and, more significant, a 99.7 per cent reduction since the programme began. In the first half of this year, 229 cases were recorded, compared with 416 cases reported during the same period last year.Only eight cases have so far been reported this month, which is a significant reduction compared to the 30 cases that were reported in July 2008. These, the partners believed, were signs that Ghana would soon be declared guinea worm free, even though they warned that if efforts were not strengthened, a single case could derail the whole process. The partners include the Ghana Health Service (GHS), the United Nations International Children�s Fund (UNICEF), the Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA), the Carter Centre, the Ghana Red Cross Society, Rotary International, World Vision and others. They made these observations in Tamale at the opening of the 2009 mid-year national review meeting on the Guinea Worm Eradication Programme (GWEP). On the current status of the disease, the National Programme Manager of GWEP, Dr Seidu Korkor, said the disease was now limited essentially to the Northern, Brong Ahafo, Ashanti and Eastern regions. He indicated that the major challenge spots during the period were Fufulso Junction and Depali, two communities in the Central Gonja and Savelugu-Nanton districts, respectively. �Fufulso Junction alone accounted for over 52 per cent (120) of all cases reported in Ghana,� he added. He attributed the success recorded to improved containment of the disease through the provision of targeted water supply, water filter equipment, free treatment, rapid response to reported cases, among others. On funding, Dr Korkor said the government and many partners continued to provide huge sums of money to support the eradication programme but entreated the government to release funds in time to coincide with the peak transmission season. He said since May this year the government had released GH�300,000 to the GWEP Secretariat as part of a budgetary allocation of GH�500,000 to be used to strengthen the programme. The Minister of Health, Mr George Sipa-Adja Yankey, said the results achieved in the eradication programme were an indication that in the near future guinea worm would no more be a concern for the government and the people of Ghana. He said the target was to have stopped transmission by 2007 but that could not be attained due to some challenges.