The center has prevented the suffering of millions of people around the world from illnesses often ignored by others. Health programs seek to provide people with the information and access to services they need to treat their illnesses and take steps to prevent future spread of
disease. An emphasis is placed on building partnerships for change among international agencies,
governments,
nongovernmental organizations, and
corporations and on working with ministries of health to strengthen or establish permanent
health care delivery systems in the poorest nations. During his acceptance speech for the
Nobel Peace Prize in 2002, Carter commented on what he felt is the greatest challenge the world faces: "Among all the possible choices, I decided that the most serious and universal problem is the growing chasm between the richest and poorest people on earth. Citizens of the ten wealthiest countries are now 75 times richer than those who live in the ten poorest ones, and the separation is increasing every year, not only between nations but also within them. The results of this disparity are root causes of most of the world's unresolved problems, including starvation, illiteracy, environmental degradation, violent conflict and unnecessary illnesses that range from Guinea worm to HIV/AIDS. Tragically, in the industrialized world there is a terrible absence of understanding or concern about those who are enduring lives of despair and hopelessness. We have not yet made the commitment to share with others an appreciable part of our excessive wealth. This is a necessary and potentially rewarding burden that we should all be willing to assume."
Disease eradication efforts The Carter Center began spearheading the campaign to eradicate
Guinea worm disease worldwide in 1986. At the time, there were about 3.5 million annual cases of the disease in 20 countries in
Africa and
Asia. In 2023, there were 14 reported cases of Guinea worm disease, which remained endemic in five countries: Angola, Chad, Ethiopia, Mali, and South Sudan. Guinea worm disease is poised to be the first
parasitic disease to be eradicated and the only disease to be eradicated without the use of
vaccines or drugs. Within affected countries, the center reinforces existing
disease eradication programs by providing technical and financial assistance, as well as logistics and tools, such as donated filter cloth material,
larvicide, and medical kits. The International Task Force for Disease Eradication has been based at The Carter Center since its formation in 1988. The group has reviewed more than 100 infectious diseases and identified six as potentially eradicable –
dracunculiasis,
poliomyelitis,
mumps,
rubella,
lymphatic filariasis, and
cysticercosis.
Implementing disease control and treatment measures Since 1996, the center has been a leader in the fight against
onchocerciasis, commonly known as river blindness – a
parasitic disease transmitted by the bites of black flies. The center currently works to stop the spread of the disease in six countries: Brazil, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Sudan, Uganda, and Venezuela, helping residents and local health workers institute and sustain drug treatment programs and health education activities. The center contributed to the efforts that successfully eliminated river blindness transmission in Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, and Mexico. The center has helped to distribute more than 500 million doses of
Mectizan (ivermectin) Center health workers also prevent transmission of
trachoma – a bacterial infection that is the leading cause of preventable blindness worldwide. Trachoma is prevalent in places that lack the tools for basic hygiene, clean water, and adequate sanitation. The Center follows the
World Health Organization's four-pronged approach – called the SAFE strategy – to fight trachoma in six African countries. The Trachoma Control Program is working to improve sanitation in those communities by building
latrines, providing corrective surgery, distributing
antibiotics, and educating communities on basic hygiene. , The Carter Center has helped to build more than one million latrines in its effort to fight trachoma. The latrines contain human waste, preventing it from serving as a breeding ground for the disease-carrying flies, thereby reducing one way the disease is spread.
Lymphatic filariasis and
malaria are mosquito-borne diseases also targeted by The Carter Center. The center has distributed four million long-lasting
insecticidal bed nets.
Training public health workers The Carter Center believes in building networks of village-based health care workers to treat people for various diseases at the same time. Emphasis is on helping national and local governments establish programs that they can sustain into the future. Since 1997, the center established with the
Ethiopian ministries of health and education the Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative to improve academic training for health care personnel in
Ethiopia and increase access to
health care in rural communities throughout the country.
Strengthening agricultural production In partnership with the Sasakawa Africa Association, the center has worked since 1986 in 15
sub-Saharan African countries to teach 8–10 million small-scale farmers improved techniques that double or triple their crop yields. The program promotes use of
fertilizers and
crop protection chemicals,
soil fertility, and environmentally friendly agronomic methods of crop production. It also supports efforts to construct quality grain storage to sustain market prices for the farmer and ensure greater
food security, establish farmers' associations, and use quality food crops such as high-protein
maize.
Reducing stigma of mental illness Rosalynn Carter led the center's efforts to fight stigma associated with
mental illness. The center works to spread awareness about mental health issues, increase equity in
mental health care, shape public policy, and advocate for the rights of people with mental illnesses. In its Global Behavioral Health Initiative, the center partnered with the Liberian Ministries of Health and Education to create a program to train mental health clinicians to serve in communities within Liberia. Over 300 Liberians have completed the training to become credentialed mental health clinicians, and 140 of these clinicians specialize in child and adolescent care. The initiative has also explored the linkages between mental health and other global health issues, such as looking into the impact of mental health support on people with neglected tropical diseases. The Carter Center works to inform public policy in Georgia to make behavioral health services accessible by helping implement and enforce parity laws, expanding school-based behavioral health services for youth, and increasing the availability of care for older adults with mental illness. In 2022, the Georgia General Assembly passed the Mental Health Parity Act in a unanimous vote, ensuring that insurance plans cover behavioral health equally to physical health. Through the Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism, the center supports and trains journalists from around the world to increase reporting on behavioral health issues and reduce discrimination against people with mental illnesses. To date, more than 250 journalists have participated in the program. Building on its journalism fellowship program, the center launched its Mental Health Parity Newsroom Collaborative in 2022, to investigate coverage of mental health care and reduce inequities in the U.S. In 2024, the cohort included more than 40 reporters and editors from over 15 news outlets. For the past 32 years, the center has held an annual symposium on mental health policy with national leaders in
mental health and other fields. == Accolades ==