The WHO has announced a new initiative to promote research and development into neglected diseases such as leishmaniasis (kala azar), human African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness), and Chagas disease, that afflict the most impoverished in developing countries.
A joint action by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and four eminent public research institutes, the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative or DNDi will work in close collaboration with WHO Tropical Disease Research program.
A mere 10% of global health research is devoted to diseases that account for 90% of the worldwide disease burden. Much of this research is devoted to diseases that affect the affluent in developed countries.
The members of DNDi will use their existing capacity and global resources to address the unmet needs of people suffering from neglected diseases by taking on drug development projects that others are unable or unwilling to pursue.
They will further harness modern science to research and develop appropriate health tools using a not-for-profit collaborative model of drug development, and highlight the importance of promoting public responsibility in providing equitable access to these drugs.
For more information visit the WHO website.
