Evaluation of schistosomiasis activities in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

Special evaluation covers the period 1980-4/85 and is based on document review and interviews with representatives of the University of Jordan (UJ), the Ministry of Health (MOH), and USAID/J. The GOJ is strongly committed to schistosomiasis control, and there is excellent interaction among the MOH, UJ (the grantee), USAID/J, WHO, and the two U.S. subcontractors, the Universities of Michigan and of Lowell. Achievements at UJ include: identification of snail species in freshwaters in Jordan and their medical and veterinary importance; snail cultivation; studies in snail (Bulinus truncatus) susceptibilty to infection with Schistosoma haematobium; establishment of parasite and snail files; cytotaxonomic studies; electrophoretic studies of Jordanian B. truncatus and the same species from neighboring countries; and determination of the susceptibility of snails to Bayluscide (a molluscicide). UJ has also trained graduate students in the fields of parasitology, malacology, and ecology and has contributed (as have the MOH and the U.S. universities) to a "Handbook on Schistosomiasis and other Snail-Mediated Diseases in Jordan." Results of some UJ studies have already been published. At the MOH, the surveillance and control of B. truncatus and diagnosis and treatment of foreign migrant agricultural laborers (among whom incidence of schistosomiasis is particularly high) is in general adequate, though modifications in the control procedures may lead to greater cost effectiveness. The project has been inadequate only in the cancellation of a training program scheduled for 4/83, and in the handbook, which was intended to be a field manual but, except for the section on identifying freshwater snails, is of too high a standard for use by field workers and also includes material not pertinent to Jordan. USAID/J should assist the MOH and the UJ in publishing a small handbook in Arabic for use by MOH technicians. It is also recommended that the grant to UJ be extended 3 years and that USAID/J consider providing equipment, training, and/or TA to the MInistry of Health.