ABSTRACT
Traditional techniques for the control of human-trypanosomiasis vectors are not suitable for use in the forested regions of West Africa because environmental conditions make them too difficult to use and/or too expensive. A pilot project has, however, shown that traps can be used to reduce G. palpalis populations, provided that the traps are deployed by those rural communities exposed to the disease within an endemic focus. Using this system, a large area can be covered in a very short time and with spectacular results that are immediately evident to the population. Moreover, it ensures proper care for the control equipment, which becomes the property of individual local farmers and is therefore maintained in such a way as to ensure Its effectiveness. There is, however, another invaluable benefit of mobilizing rural communities: it encourages an exceptional level of attendance during visits by medical personnel and hence the rapid sterilization of the disease’s human reservoir.
