31 January 2012
On 30th January it was announced a new, coordinated push by a diverse range of public and private partners to combat 10 neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) by 2020. Thirteen pharmaceutical companies, the U.S. and U.K. governments, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Bank and officials from NTD-endemic countries pledged to bring a unique focus to defeating these diseases an to work together to improve the lives of the billion people worldwide affected by NTDs.New funding commitments will fully support work toward the eradication of Guinea worm, as well as expedite progress toward teh 2020 goals of: elimination of lymphatic filariasis, blinding trachoma, sleeping sickness and leprosy; and control of soil-transmitted helminthes, schistosomiasis, river blindness, Chagas and visceral leishmaniasis.
More information available on the pledge website.
