EDITORIAL

Abstract

The Primary Health Care (PHC) approach makes intersectorality one of the keys to the success of achieving Health for All by the Year 2000 (HF A/2000). One of the key programme components 0£ PHC is control 0£ communicable disease (CDC). No one will dispute the critical role of CDC in improving the health 0£ the people of the "developing" countries -Africa in particular. One 0£ the reasons (at least an important justification) for the vertical programmes (campaigns) £or CDC stems from this recognition. But vertical programmes are almost antithesis to intra-sectoral let alone inter-sectoral collaboration. The idea of integrating vertical programmes into the general health services is a very old
one. But little progress has been made in those countries where such programmes had been developed. Progress in this area is determinant to the development of a consequent and effective PHC.