World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day: Beat NTDs: For Good. For All.
World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day is an international awareness day for NTDs. Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are a group of ancient diseases that threaten 1.6 billion people living in the poorest and most marginalized communities worldwide. What sets NTDs apart is the way they blind, disable, or disfigure people, taking away not only their health, but also their chances of staying in school, earning a living, or even being accepted by their family or community.
World NTD Day brings together partners to unify behind a common goal: beating NTDs. The first-ever World NTD Day will be celebrated on 30 January 2020. World NTD Day will set the stage for a critical year of advocacy and commitment for the NTD community and beyond. World NTD Day will bring together civil society advocates, community leaders, global health experts and policymakers working across the diverse NTD landscape, and unify partners behind our common goal: to #BeatNTDs. For good. For all.
Why Now?
- 2020 will be a decisive year for NTDs. Next year, the World Health Organization is expected to launch new NTD goals to guide progress until 2030. In response, leaders will have the opportunity and responsibility to recommit to beating NTDs and put political and financial resources behind their words. However, this won’t happen without the support of a well-organized NTD community driving attention and action consistently in the months ahead. To succeed, we need to start 2020 strong—which is where World NTD Day comes in.
- 30 January is the anniversary of the landmark 2012 London Declaration on NTDs, which unified partners across sectors, countries and disease communities to push for greater investment and action on NTDs. World NTD Day will not only honor this incredible show of support, but inspire and rally partners each and every year behind the fight to #BeatNTDs.
NTDs
- Buruli ulcer
- Chagas disease
- Dengue and Chikungunya
- Guinea worm disease
- Echinococcosis
- Foodborne trematodiases
- Human African trypanosomiasis
- Leishmaniasis
- Leprosy
- Lymphatic filariasis
- Mycetoma, chromoblastomycosis and other deep mycoses
- Onchocerciasis
- Rabies
- Scabies and other ectoparasites
- Schistosomiasis
- Soil-transmitted helminthiases
- Snakebite envenoming
- Taeniasis/Cysticercosis
- Trachoma
- Yaws
NTDs and SDGs
- NTDs have the greatest relevance for SDG 3 (the health goal) but affect and are affected by many of the other development areas covered under the 2030 Agenda.
- For example SDG 1 which targets the ending of poverty in all its forms everywhere, NTD programmes can play an important role in reducing the financial burden of health care costs.
- Similar areas of alignment are apparent when it comes to Goals 2 (Zero Hunger), 4 (Quality Education), 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and 17 (Partnerships for the Goals), while less obvious connections link NTDs to the ten SDG remaining.
- It is therefore important to integrate NTD activities and interventions into broader health systems, based on the principles of Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which is at the heart of the SDG health agenda, as evidenced by the 2030 Agenda Declaration, which states that UHC is essential to promoting physical and mental health and well-being and to extend life expectancy for all so that “no one must be left behind.”
Source of info: World Health Organization
