Every year on January 30th, the global health and development community comes together to acknowledge World Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD) Day. Affecting the world’s poorest people, NTDs include several parasitic, viral, and bacterial diseases that cause substantial illness for more than 1.7 billion globally. NTDs are responsible for thousands of preventable deaths each year and cause impairments that perpetuate the cycle of poverty-keeping millions of adults out of work and children out of school.
EVI has this year joined over 300 other global health organisations in signing on to #EndtheNeglect and #BeatNTDs. EVI staff has also enthusiastically participated in the ‘1 in 5’ challenge, as 1 of 5 people on the planet are affected by NTDs. The social media challenge aims to bring awareness to the scale of this issue. The first step to beating these diseases is raising awareness and ending the neglect.
EVI’s Commitment
Since 1998, EVI is supporting global efforts to develop effective and affordable vaccines against diseases of poverty and emerging infectious diseases. EVI has remained committed to supporting vaccine development with a strong focus on NTDs and diseases of poverty through international partnerships, involving public research institutions, private sector, governments, and civil society – including partners from affected countries.
When diseases like leishmaniasis persist, families, communities, and economies suffer. Stigmatising NTDs can hurt a person’s chances of staying in school, earning a living, or even being accepted by family and community.
World NTD Day is a valuable opportunity for EVI and its partners to reflect on the progress made to improved health and save lives by addressing unmet needs.
EVI’s Work in NTD
EVI works with partners worldwide to spearhead global vaccine development. Through coordination, operational and regulatory support, EVI leads R&D projects to advance vaccine development against NTDs and other diseases of poverty. Currently, EVI is supporting the development of a vaccine against leishmaniasis, a parasitic disease that causes debilitating and disfiguring lesions on the face, limbs and trunk. Every year, an estimated 1 million new cases occur across 100 countries, mainly affecting people in poor communities.
In addition, EVI coordinates TRANSVAC, a European infrastructure for vaccine research that comprises 26 research organisations from 9 different countries. Through, TRANSVAC, EVI have been able to support pre-clinical research into vaccines for dengue, Chikungunya and onchocerciasis.
EVI remains deeply committed to harness the power of collaboration and engagement to #EndtheNeglect and #BeatNTDs.
The '1 in 5' social media challenge aims to bring awareness to the scale of this issue.
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