Month: May 2025

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May282025

WHA78 roundtable highlights role of partnerships and pooled funding in advancing NTD elimination

At the 78th World Health Assembly, a Devex-hosted roundtable brought together global health leaders to explore how innovative financing mechanisms are accelerating progress against neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). The discussion focused on how pooled funding is helping to de-risk innovation, overcome chronic underinvestment in NTDs, and mobilize new sources of support.

A key highlight was the impact of the Reaching the Last Mile Fund, which has become a leading example of how strategic partnerships and collaborative financing can deliver tangible results in NTD elimination efforts.

May272025

WHA78 highlights: milestones, partnerships, and momentum toward NTD elimination

Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) were in sharp focus at the 78th World Health Assembly, where global health leaders marked key milestones and deepened commitments to elimination. Merck/MSD celebrated a historic achievement of 5 billion Mectizan treatments donated to combat river blindness and lymphatic filariasis—a powerful testament to decades of sustained public health impact. Meanwhile, the END Fund and the African Union Commission signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding to accelerate NTD elimination efforts across the continent, aligning with the goals of Agenda 2063 and the Africa Health Strategy.

Additionally, Helen Keller Intl hosted a high-impact side event that brought together health ministers, technical experts, and partners, reinforcing that equity, local leadership, and sustained investment must guide the next chapter of NTD elimination efforts. In another show of regional solidarity, Ministries of Health from across Africa pledged to intensify cross-border collaboration, reaffirming country-driven leadership as essential to ending NTDs.