Leprosy Isn't Over: South-East Asia's Unfinished Fight

As we commemorate World Leprosy Day on January 25, the global community is oldest diseases-has not yet been consigned to history.

- Narayan Kulkarni

Nowhere is this more evident than in the South-East Asia Region, which continues to shoulder the largest share of the global leprosy burden. While remarkable progress has been made, the persistence of new cases underscores an urgent truth: leprosy is curable, but elimination demands far more than medicine alone.

South-East Asia accounts for the majority of newly detected leprosy cases worldwide. According to a WHO report released on January 23, 2026, India and Indonesia continue to report more than 10,000 new cases annually, while countries such as Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka report thousands more. This mirrors global trends from 2024, when Brazil, India and Indonesia together accounted for the highest number of cases, even as 55 countries reported zero cases. Poverty, overcrowded living conditions, limited access to health services and social marginalisation continue to create fertile ground for transmission.