When The Carter Center began leading the international campaign to eradicate Guinea worm disease in 1986, there were an estimated 3.5 million cases in at least 21 countries in Africa and Asia.

Today, thanks to the work of The Carter Center and its partners — including the countries themselves — the incidence has been reduced by more than 99.99% to 14 provisional* human cases in 2023. During the first three months of 2024, not a single case was detected worldwide.