With the London Declaration on Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), the international community set itself the goal of controlling, eliminating or eradicating ten NTDs by 2020. The declaration was signed seven years ago by pharmaceutical corporations, states and NGOs. Accordingly, it is high time for some interim results.
In 2017, more money than ever before was invested in research and development for tackling poverty-related and neglected diseases. However, this figure of 3.6 billion US dollars is well below WHO recommendations, as evidenced by the latest report from the Policy Cures Research think tank.
Ending discrimination, stigma and prejudice is the theme of this year’s World Leprosy Day. A particular focus thereby is on the protection of children who suffer from leprosy, who according to the United Nations continue to be discriminated against in numerous countries.
Over one billion people suffer from neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), a large number of which are worm diseases. Recently, researchers announced a new drug treatment that could represent a significant advancement over current methods of treatment.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and FAIRMED are extending their partnership. Thereby, both parties are committing to helping refugees for another year in Cameroon’s two largest cities of Yaoundé and Douala.
FAIRMED is celebrating its sixtieth anniversary this year, and we would like to congratulate you! Because it's only thanks to people like you that for more than half a century, we have been able to dedicate ourselves to the task of helping the world's poorest.
In Sri Lanka, FAIRMED is committed to the needs of people living with disability and to help them to live a life of dignity. 17-year-old Jafazeer Haneepa, for example, suffers from cerebral palsy. You can read here how he and his mother Mawpara overcome the hardships that they face on a daily basis.
In Sri Lanka, as elsewhere, there is a great stigma attached to leprosy. Against this background, FAIRMED has to resort to unconventional methods in its efforts to combat the disease. Our deputy marketing director David Maurer was on the ground to see for himself how we accomplish this task.
Well-equipped delivery rooms, medicines and skilled staff are needed for women to be able to bring their babies into this world without complications. The first step to a safe birth begins with the communication of knowledge. You can read here about how FAIRMED is supporting mothers in the Nepalese region of Baglung through awareness-raising campaigns.
The indigenous Aka in the Central African Republic are extremely poor and the victims of open discrimination. FAIRMED employee and ethnologist Johanna Vögeli experienced first-hand how they brave their situation and the role of community in this struggle.