Fighting Neglected Tropical Diseases
Together with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other partners, we are working towards the goal of sustainable elimination of some of the most devastating Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) as public health problems in some of the most underserved regions of the world by 2030.
NTDs are preventable and treatable diseases that place a heavy burden on the world’s poorest populations. In fact, with over 1.7 billion people around the world afflicted – including more than a half a billion children – one in six people are infected with NTDs worldwide on average. And despite the huge amount of suffering these diseases inflict, most people around the world are unaware of them.
NTDs are widespread in poorer, rural communities, where most people live on less than two dollars per day. These diseases impair physical and cognitive development, contribute to mother and child illness and death, make it difficult to farm or earn a living, and limit productivity in the workplace. As a result, they trap the impoverished in a cycle of poverty and disease. Global NTD programs, coordinated by the WHO in collaboration with private and public sector partners, focus on identifying regions and countries where NTDs are present and work to control or, when possible, eliminate them.
In line with our ‘Health for All’ vision and ‘Science for a better life’ purpose, we have been collaborating with the WHO since 2002 in the fight against NTDs. In 2012 we signed the “London Declaration on NTDs” aimed at eliminating the 10 most devastating NTDs by 2020. Though significant progress has been made through public-private partnerships, many of the targets have not yet been achieved. Therefore, Bayer has also signed the Kigali Declaration on NTDs in 2022.
NTDs are preventable and treatable diseases that place a heavy burden on the world’s poorest populations. In fact, with over 1.7 billion people around the world afflicted – including more than a half a billion children – one in six people are infected with NTDs worldwide on average. And despite the huge amount of suffering these diseases inflict, most people around the world are unaware of them.
NTDs are widespread in poorer, rural communities, where most people live on less than two dollars per day. These diseases impair physical and cognitive development, contribute to mother and child illness and death, make it difficult to farm or earn a living, and limit productivity in the workplace. As a result, they trap the impoverished in a cycle of poverty and disease. Global NTD programs, coordinated by the WHO in collaboration with private and public sector partners, focus on identifying regions and countries where NTDs are present and work to control or, when possible, eliminate them.
In line with our ‘Health for All’ vision and ‘Science for a better life’ purpose, we have been collaborating with the WHO since 2002 in the fight against NTDs. In 2012 we signed the “London Declaration on NTDs” aimed at eliminating the 10 most devastating NTDs by 2020. Though significant progress has been made through public-private partnerships, many of the targets have not yet been achieved. Therefore, Bayer has also signed the Kigali Declaration on NTDs in 2022.
"Bayer endorses the Kigali Declaration on Neglected Tropical Diseases. We focus on eliminating African sleeping sickness, Chagas disease as well as taeniasis. We are committed to manufacturing and donating essential medicines as long as needed to achieve the goals set in the WHO NTD Roadmap 2030."
Bayer committed itself to achieve the goals of the WHO NTD Roadmap 2021-2030 targeting the elimination of 20 NTDs as a public health problem by 2030. This advances the NTD agenda with opportunities to stimulate efforts through comprehensive approaches that require multisectoral collaboration.
The WHO NTD road map will be supported by the WHO Sustainability Framework for Action. After all, to make sustainability successful, international donors and implementing partners will need to identify and utilize synergies beyond disease-specific programming and consider their potential roles in strengthening health systems. This WHO guiding document will help Member States, stakeholders and partners to align their strategies on identifying sustainable pathways towards achievement of the road map target by 2030. The document is considered to be a living one, to be improved further as we gain experience from the application of these principles in field conditions.
We will continue supporting WHO in fighting African sleeping sickness and Chagas disease. In2020 we added a new engagement to fight Taeniasis (pork tapeworm infections).
"I'm proud to be able to think clearly again, thanks to the treatment."
Photostory: Next Stop Congo – Visit to the WHO’s Program to Control Sleeping Sickness
Quantifiable impact through data
We believe that to measure success we must work with our partners to understand our impact on the lives of individuals living with and at risk of contracting NTDs. We are currently supporting the WHO in building capacities for data processing, analysis, and sharing via the WHO’s Information System to Control/Eliminate NTDs (WISCENTD). The WISCENTD will play a major role in helping us steer our NTD strategy by allowing us to monitor progress in achieving the targets for NTDs set in the WHO NTD Roadmap. Additionally, it will provide support to the WHO Member States in their efforts to collect, validate, and analyze data from national surveillance systems.
Through our close partnership and collaboration with the WHO’s efforts to eradicate NTDs, we will be able to measurably and credibly demonstrate the impact of our efforts on the communities suffering from NTDs. In addition to working with reliable third-party organizations, we are committed to regularly reporting on the progress being made in reducing the impact of these NTDs on our website.