Category: Events

Amref Health Africa, with support from the Gates Foundation, hosted a powerful virtual forum exploring how African countries can safeguard and accelerate progress against NTDs amid evolving health challenges.

The event brought together leading voices in global health—including Dr. Githinji Gitahi (Amref), Dr. Ebere Okereke (the Reaching the Last Mile Fund), Dr. Clarer Jones Mwansasu (Tanzania MOH), Dr. Solomon Zewdu (the END Fund), and Onome Dibosa-Osadolor (UNICEF)—to highlight country leadership, program integration, and innovations in co-financing as key drivers toward sustainable NTD elimination.

With insights from across the continent, the webinar underscored that while NTDs continue to impact millions, African-led strategies and partnerships are paving the way for a future free from these diseases.

The Immunization and Child Survival Forum in Maputo, Mozambique in July brought together leaders and partners committed to improving child health across Africa. While the continent continues to bear a disproportionate share of under-5 years child mortality, it is also where some of the most impactful and scalable solutions are taking shape.

NTDs remain a major contributor to poor child health—leading to disability, malnutrition, and missed educational opportunities. At the forum, a dedicated lunch hosted by RLMF highlighted the need to integrate NTD efforts into broader child survival strategies.

The event reaffirmed a strong, shared commitment to ensuring that every child, everywhere, has the opportunity not just to survive, but to thrive.

At a high-level session during the EDCTP Forum in Kigali, Ministers of Health, global researchers, donors, and frontline health workers gathered to celebrate recent milestones in the elimination of NTDs and to renew calls for continued investment in research and development. Titled “From Collaboration to Celebration: Towards Sustainable Elimination of Neglected Tropical Diseases,” the interactive event highlighted the transformative power of science, equity, and political will in addressing diseases that continue to affect over 1 billion people globally, particularly in marginalized communities.