Leprosy and Tuberculosis Relief (LTR) Nigeria has called for a stronger national focus on the reintegration of persons affected by leprosy, arguing that treatment and cure must be followed by deliberate measures to restore livelihoods, education, social participation and economic independence.
The call was made by **Saleh Farouq Gagarawa**, Media and Communication Officer, LTR Nigeria, during an interview on **Cool FM 96.9 Kano’s Midday Oasis**, where he discussed leprosy, stigma, disability, reintegration and the need to improve how Nigeria tracks the lives of people affected by the disease after treatment.
Gagarawa stressed that leprosy is a **curable disease** and that people should not be treated with fear or discrimination simply because they have visible physical impairments associated with previous leprosy infection. He explained that many of the disabilities seen among persons affected by leprosy are linked to delayed diagnosis and treatment, rather than an ongoing infection.
“Just because you see someone with a disability associated with leprosy does not mean that the person can transmit the disease,” Gagarawa explained during the programme, stressing that persons who have completed treatment should be accepted, embraced and given opportunities to participate fully in society.
He said the real challenge facing many people affected by leprosy today extends beyond the medical treatment of the disease. According to him, people who may spend extended periods receiving treatment or living within leprosy settlements can return to society facing difficult questions about where they will live, how they will earn a living, whether they have skills, and how they will regain their place within their communities.
“Where will the person start from?” he asked, highlighting the need to consider skills, sustainable livelihoods and housing as part of the reintegration process rather than treating them as issues that arise only after treatment has ended.
Gagarawa also drew attention to the exclusion of persons affected by leprosy from broader empowerment opportunities. He noted that while Nigeria has numerous programmes targeting employment, skills acquisition and economic empowerment, persons affected by leprosy are often not sufficiently visible within such initiatives.
He argued that people affected by leprosy should be deliberately included in mainstream empowerment programmes, including employment, adult education, skills development and entrepreneurship initiatives. “They are humans too,” he said, stressing that reintegration should mean more than simply returning people to their communities; it should provide them with the means to participate productively and independently.
A key part of the discussion was the absence of comprehensive information on the circumstances of people after they have completed leprosy treatment. Gagarawa explained that while health programmes collect information on people diagnosed and treated for leprosy, there is a critical need to better understand what happens afterwards, how many have acquired skills, how many are employed, their housing conditions, access to education, household circumstances and other factors that determine whether they have successfully reintegrated.
It was against this background that he introduced the proposed LTR **National Leprosy Vulnerability Intelligence and Inclusion System (NLVIIS)**, an initiative he described as an approach to generating better intelligence on the vulnerabilities and circumstances of persons affected by leprosy.
According to Gagarawa, NLVIIS would seek to answer questions that conventional case reporting does not adequately address: who has been affected by leprosy, who has completed treatment, who lives with disability, who has access to education, who has skills, who is employed, who has adequate housing, and who may require further support to achieve sustainable reintegration.
He clarified that the objective is not to monitor people’s private movements, but to understand vulnerability at household and community level in order to inform appropriate interventions. The information generated, he explained, could help stakeholders move from simply identifying people affected by leprosy to connecting them with relevant opportunities and support.
The interview also highlighted the human cost of failing to plan for reintegration. Gagarawa shared the case of a woman who had been affected by leprosy, received treatment and later developed disability associated with delayed treatment. Before becoming ill, she worked as a laundry worker. Following her return to the community, she reportedly lost her job because her employers believed she could still transmit the disease, despite having completed treatment.
Gagarawa said such cases demonstrate why reintegration should begin before a person leaves treatment rather than waiting until the individual is already facing exclusion. He suggested that affected persons could leave treatment with relevant skills, livelihood opportunities or support to establish sustainable income-generating activities.
The conversation also addressed the need to educate the wider public. Gagarawa said LTR continues to use public enlightenment and social media to challenge myths surrounding leprosy and promote accurate information about the disease, its treatment and the lives of people affected by it.
He emphasised that stigma can affect not only people who have had leprosy but also their families. Misconceptions about transmission and inheritance, he noted, can contribute to discrimination against children and relatives of persons affected by the disease. He stressed the importance of correcting such misconceptions through sustained public education.
The interview also touched on innovations aimed at improving access to dermatological expertise in Nigeria. Gagarawa discussed the **SkincAir project**, including a digital application being developed to support healthcare providers in identifying skin conditions in settings where access to dermatologists is limited. He explained that the platform had already been deployed and was receiving data, with its use initially limited to healthcare professionals.
In his closing remarks, Gagarawa called for greater public participation in advocacy for persons affected by leprosy. He observed that while many social and health issues attract strong public advocacy, leprosy often receives comparatively little attention because of persistent stigma and misconceptions.
He challenged listeners to become advocates for people affected by leprosy and to move beyond fear and stereotypes towards acceptance, inclusion and opportunity.
“People affected by leprosy are part of society,” the discussion emphasised, reinforcing the central message of the programme: **the fight against leprosy cannot end with treatment. It must continue until the people affected by the disease can live, work and participate in society without discrimination.**
The full interview was broadcast on **Cool FM 96.9 Kano’s Midday Oasis**, providing an opportunity to bring the conversation about leprosy, cure, disability and reintegration to a wider public audience.
