‘From collaboration to celebration: Towards sustainable elimination of neglected tropical diseases’, organised by Uniting to Combat Neglected Tropical Diseases and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi), and chaired by EDCTP prize-winner Dr John Amuasi, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana, focused on the significant progress made in the NTD elimination agenda set out by WHO. More than 50 countries have eliminated one or more NTDs.
Dr Amuasi highlighted the significant contribution made by the Kigali Declaration, agreed in 2022. This declaration, and the leadership role played by Rwanda, has galvanised the political will to tackle the NTD challenge in Africa.
Country perspective
Honourable Minister Dr Sabin Nsanzimana, Rwanda’s Minister of Health, reflected on whether the ‘neglected’ label was now helpful. He suggested that NTDs should be considered ‘priority’ diseases, given the scales of their impacts on mortality and quality of life, particularly on the most disadvantaged in society.
He argued that the feasibility of elimination had been demonstrated and that they offered examples that could be emulated by other countries. Drawing on his past medical experience, he suggested that the focus should be on identifying and implementing the three most impactful interventions that could advance the elimination agenda.
Honourable Minister Diouhé Bah, Minister of Health and Public Hygiene, Guinea, described how Guinea had been certified as having eliminated human African trypanosomiasis (HAT, or sleeping sickness) as a public health problem in January 2025.
He suggested that this landmark achievement was the result of collaboration. It depended on high-level political will within the country, the crucial development of new treatments by DNDi and its partners, support from WHO and international agencies, and the mobilisation of communities. New drug treatments have been integrated with other disease control efforts. South–South collaboration has also been important, he suggested, with countries on the road to elimination sharing experiences with each other.
The European lens
Dr Michael Makanga, Executive Director of the Global Health EDCTP3 programme, emphasised that NTDs remained central to the EDCTP agenda. EDCTP has supported 70 NTD projects, spanning diagnostics, treatments and vaccines, trials and implementation research. Through a specific EDCTP3 call, a further €46m would be provided to support NTD research.
He stressed that partnerships were core to global efforts to end NTDs, with countries in the driving seat. On World NTD Day, EDCTP had also signed the Kigali Declaration, demonstrating its commitment to African-led efforts to eliminate NTDs.
Kasia Jurczak (Head of the Unit for Combatting Diseases, DG Research and Innovation, European Commission) focused on NTDs within the EU policy framework. Of key importance is the EU Global Health Strategy, which comprises multiple elements, including humanitarian responses and global health research.
In addition, the African Union–EU Innovation Agenda, agreed in 2023, incorporates health and provides additional routes to support activities that address NTDs. She argued that an end-to-end perspective in medical intervention development was now essential, and provided opportunities to enhance economic growth. Capacity building and technology transfer would promote innovation in Africa but also strengthen global health security and deliver benefits to Europe.
Global partnerships against NTDs
Dr Samuel Kariuki, Continental Lead Africa, DNDi, Kenya, highlighted how DNDi’s successes in new drug development had been founded on partnerships. The achievements in product development, and in elimination more generally, could not have been achieved by partners working alone.
He noted that DNDi had always sought to work closely with countries, which always lead elimination efforts. DNDi’s drugs for HAT, such as fexinidazole and acoziborole, were giving countries important new options to simplify treatment, offering a chance to close out the ‘last mile’.
Maintaining momentum
Dr Isatou Touray, the newly appointed Executive Director of Uniting to Combat NTDs, also highlighted the importance of the Kigali Declaration and Rwanda’s leadership, which has helped to mobilise nearly US$2bn in additional support. R&D efforts are a key part of the jigsaw, but equally important to progress are advocacy, political will and community engagement – all stakeholders need to work in partnership to achieve challenging goals.
She also cautioned that this was not a time for complacency. Continued investment, leadership and collaboration would be essential if WHO 2030 elimination goals are to be met.
A voice from the frontline
Finally, Priscila Chebjira, Nurse Incharge at Amudat Hospital in Uganda, provided a reminder why the battle against NTDs needs to continue. She leads the ward responsible for NTDs, and comes to face-to-face with the consequences of NTD infections every day.
Her patients, children and adults, are from impoverished backgrounds, with little knowledge about NTDs. NTDs disrupt their lives and their ability to make a living. Treatments have improved, but the sound of children crying in the morning after injections is a reminder of why new oral drugs are needed. Listening to frontline workers like Priscila can provide real insights into what patients and health workers truly need.