The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced that Novartis pharmaceutical corporation is committing $250 M to the fight against neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) and malaria. This comes in the wake of the Kigali Summit on Malaria and NTDs, which was held alongside the 26th Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting (CHOGM), on 23 June 2022.

The Kigali Declaration, announced at the event, aims to mobilize the political will and commitments required to achieve the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal 3 (the health goal), which includes NTDs, and to deliver the targets set in WHO’s NTD road map for 2021–2030.

The financial commitment announced by Novartis will help fund cutting-edge research and development, and will focus specifically on developing new, effective treatments for three NTDs (Chagas disease, dengue and visceral leishmaniasis), in addition to cryptosporidiosis and malaria.