Will expand drug donation programmes and provide US$785m to support r&d efforts
Thirteen pharmaceutical companies, along with governments and other global health organisations, have unveiled a ‘coordinated push’ to accelerate progress toward eliminating or controlling 10 neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) by the end of the decade.
The companies, along with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Bank and other groups, have pledged to work together in the ‘largest coordinated effort to date’ to combat NTDs.
The plan, announced at the Royal College of Physicians in London, will see the expansion of existing drug donation programmes and provide more than US$785m to support r&d efforts.
With new and existing pledges companies will donate an average of 1.4 billion treatments each year, according to the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA). The new commitments will close the funding gap to eradicate Guinea worm disease and make progress toward the elimination of lymphatic filariasis, blinding trachoma, sleeping sickness and leprosy, and control of soil-transmitted helminthes, schistosomiasis, river blindness, Chagas disease and visceral leishmaniasis.
Bill Gates said: ‘This innovative approach must serve as a model for solving other global development challenges and will help millions of people build self-sufficiency and overcome the need for aid.’
The Gates Foundation announced a five-year, US$363 million commitment to support NTD product and operational research.
Speaking on behalf of the 13 pharmaceutical companies involved, Sir Andrew Witty, ceo of GlaxoSmithKline, said: ‘Many companies and organisations have worked for decades to fight these horrific diseases. But no one company or organisation can do it alone. Today, we pledge to work hand-in-hand to revolutionise the way we fight these diseases now and in the future.’
To guide the effort against NTDs, the World Health Organisation (WHO) this week unveiled a new strategy, Accelerating work to overcome the global impact of neglected tropical diseases – A roadmap for implementation, that sets targets for what can be achieved by the end of the decade.
‘The efforts of WHO, researchers, partners, and the contributions of industry have changed the face of NTDs. These ancient diseases are now being brought to their knees with stunning speed,’ said Dr Margaret Chan, director-general of the WHO. ‘With the boost to this momentum being made today, I am confident almost all of these diseases can be eliminated or controlled by the end of this decade.’
The following list outlines the pledges made by the pharma companies:
