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In June 1998 IFPRI and the Marga Institute organized a 2020 South Asia workshop in Colombo to continue the dialogue begun in a 2020 South Asia workshop in Kathmandu in March 1995. The meeting in Colombo revisited the 2020 Vision for South Asia in light of the major economic developments of recent years inside and outside the region. G. L. Pieris, the Sri Lankan minister of justice, constitutional affairs, ethnic affairs, and national integration, inaugurated the workshop. About 40 researchers, technical experts, and policymakers from 5 South Asian countries participated in the meeting. The objectives and strategies are those agreed upon by the workshop participants. Projections by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) indicate that even with an annual average rate of economic growth of 5.5 percent during the next two decades and substantial investment in health and education, South Asia will still have about 70 million malnourished children by 2020. Food insecurity and poverty will continue to affect about 200 million people. If economic growth drops below the projected level by about 25 percent, the region is unlikely to see any reduction in malnutrition and poverty. In such conditions, social and political tensions could reach proportions that governments might find difficult to manage in an orderly manner. With these concerns in mind, workshop participants addressed the following issues: The realistic goals that countries should set to eradicate food insecurity, poverty, and malnutrition and ensure a reasonably high quality of life by 2020; The combination of strategies that would enable countries to manage their natural resources on a sustainable basis while achieving the goals set for 2020; The improvements and changes in policy that should have high priority for the purpose of achieving these goals; and The main areas of regional cooperation for realizing the goals. ; Non-PR ; IFPRI1; 2020 ; DGO

Background Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is a so-called neglected tropical disease, currently overshadowed by higher-profile efforts to address malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS. Despite recent successes in arresting transmission, some 40 million people who already have the disease have been largely neglected. This study aims to increase understanding of how this vulnerable, neglected group can be helped. Methods We used purposive sampling to select 60 men and women with filarial lymphoedema (45 with filarial elephantiasis and 15 men with filarial hydrocoele) from the south of Sri Lanka in 2004–2005. Participants were selected to give a balance of men and women and poor and nonpoor, and a range of stages of the disease. Participants' experiences and the consequences of their disease for the household were explored with in-depth qualitative, semistructured interviews. Findings LF was extremely debilitating to participants over long periods of time. The stigma attached to the condition caused social isolation and emotional distress, and delayed diagnosis and treatment, resulting in undue advancement of the disease. Free treatment services at government clinics were avoided because the participants' condition would be identifiable in public. Loss of income due to the condition was reported by all households in the sample, not just the poorest. Households that were already on low incomes were pushed into near destitution, from which it was almost impossible to escape. Affected members of low-income households also had less opportunity to obtain appropriate treatment from distant clinics, and had living and working conditions that made hygiene and compliance difficult. Significance This highly vulnerable category of patients has low visibility, thus becoming marginalized and forgotten. With an estimated 300,000 total cases of elephantiasis and/or oedema in Sri Lanka, and around 300,000 men with filarial hydrocoele, the affected households will need help and support for many years to come. These individuals should be specially targeted for identification, outreach, and care. The global strategy for elimination is aimed at the cessation of transmission, but there will remain some 40 million individuals with clinical manifestations whose needs and problems are illustrated in this study.