New NTD Special Envoys to focus on eliminating NTD primarily on LAC region

Former presidents of Guatemala and Chile and former PAHO director join forces with the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases to eliminate diseases of poverty

Today, the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases (Global Network), a major initiative of the Sabin Vaccine Institute, announced His Excellency, President Alvaro Arz- Irigoyen of Guatemala (1996-2000), His Excellency, President Ricardo Lagos Escobar of Chile (2000-2006) and former Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Director Dr. Mirta Roses Periago as the organization's newest Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD) Special Envoys. They will join the efforts of current NTD Special Envoy, His Excellency, President John A. Kufuor of the Republic of Ghana (2001-2009), who was appointed in April 2012. The collaboration was announced at a panel hosted by the Global Network and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) to welcome the new NTD Special Envoys.

The new NTD Special Envoys will focus primarily on the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region. President Arz-, President Lagos and Dr. Roses will provide the political voice and the technical expertise needed to reach the World Health Organization's (WHO) goal to control or eliminate the most common NTDs by 2020. The NTD Special Envoys will encourage endemic country government officials to prioritize the development and implementation of national plans of action for NTD treatment and control and to increase resource allocation toward these programs. Additionally, they will work with key G8/G20 countries, such as Brazil, Canada and Japan, to increase their support for the prevention and treatment of NTDs through expanded technical assistance and increased investments across the region.

"We are thrilled to expand our team of NTD Special Envoys," said Dr. Neeraj Mistry, managing director of the Global Network. "President Kufuor's efforts have paved the way for increased NTD bilateral engagement and advocacy. With President Arz-, President Lagos and Dr. Roses joining him, I am confident that we will see increased commitment towards global NTD control and elimination efforts-particularly among health ministers and policy makers in endemic countries."

NTDs cause blindness, massive swelling in appendages and limbs, severe malnutrition and anemia. They are a leading cause of pregnancy complications among women and are a key source of poverty, reducing school attendance among children and worker productivity for adults. In the LAC region alone, 100 million people are currently infected with one or more NTD, most of whom live in impoverished, rural areas.

"NTDs disproportionately affect marginalized groups, such as indigenous populations and people living in isolated, rural areas," said President Arz-. "I am honored to be a part of the Global Network's special envoy team and the global effort to improve the lives of billions of people currently living in poverty."

NTD control and elimination programs are some of the most cost-effective public health interventions available today. For a cost of approximately 50 cents per person, a packet of pills administered once a year can treat and protect against these diseases. Pharmaceutical companies donate most of the treatments and many programs use existing infrastructure, such as schools and community centers, to administer them.

"Addressing NTDs today is a highly cost-effective investment in the region's future," said President Lagos. "NTD treatment programs help increase school attendance, improve maternal and infant health and support economic development. Eliminating or controlling NTDs will accelerate existing efforts to achieve the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Latin America and the Caribbean."

The LAC region already has made significant progress towards NTD control and elimination. While serving as the Director of PAHO, Dr. Roses set the stage for the passage of the resolution, "Elimination of Neglected Diseases and other Poverty-Related Infections," which was adopted by all of the PAHO Member States in 2009. This critical call to action set the goal of eliminating 10 neglected infectious diseases and drastically reducing the burden of two others by the end of 2015.

"The LAC region is poised to become a leader in the global movement to control and eliminate NTDs," said Dr. Roses. "We have already seen unprecedented collaboration across governments, the private sector and civil society groups through the London Declaration and the 2009 PAHO resolution. In my new role as NTD Special Envoy, I will ensure these efforts are carried forward until we meet our elimination goals."

Source: Sabin Vaccine Institute