30.06.2020

Tropical Diseases are Neglected Again

During the pandemic, the treatment and control of many diseases are postponed, especially in the least developed countries. In these countries, neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) have been tackled for years with the help of drug donations. To a large extent, these donations were enshrined in the London Declaration of 2012. However, this agreement with 13 international pharmaceutical manufacturers has now expired.

The agreement was due to be extended at the end of June 2020 at a conference in Rwanda's capital Kigali. However, the meeting was cancelled due to the ongoing COVID19 pandemic. A make-up date has not yet been set. The Kigali conference would have been extremely important in the fight against NTDs, according to an expert video conference held by the German Network against Neglected Tropical Diseases (DNTDs) on June 24.