This year, 2026, will be my 25th as WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Leprosy Elimination. During this quarter-century, I have visited 127 countries and devoted more than 3,700 days to activities promoting the elimination of leprosy.

India, Brazil, and Indonesia detect approximately 80% of all new cases of leprosy reported annually. I began this year with a commitment to encourage high-level conferences in these countries. A high-level conference brings decision-makers together and creates the conditions necessary for the formulation and implementation of effective strategies. I believe that conferences like this are an essential part of the effort to eliminate leprosy worldwide.

In January, I met with Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto and Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin. They agreed to hold a national leprosy conference, to be attended by the president. In February, I traveled to India, where I discussed the elimination of discriminatory laws against leprosy with Minister of Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal, and exchanged views on holding a state-level conference in Uttar Pradesh, where leprosy is endemic. Then, in March, I participated in a national high-level conference on leprosy in Brazil. Based on an agreement with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who visited Japan last year, the conference included in-depth discussion of concrete measures to be taken.

I turned 87 in January, but my aspirations have not changed since those of my younger days. I will continue to work with all my might according to my motto – solutions are to be found in the same place as the problems – so that no one suffering from leprosy is left behind.