The tool provides comprehensive and publicly available data on actual resources committed to end neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), with partners themselves owning and ensuring the accuracy of the data.
Today, 30th January 2023, a new interactive online tool has been launched to help track global resources to end neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). The Kigali Declaration Commitment Tracker is designed to capture, track and monitor commitments to deliver the WHO roadmap on neglected tropical diseases.
The Commitment Tracker provides an overview of the volume of resources being invested in NTD programmes, including tracking endorsements of the Kigali Declaration on NTDs – a high-level, political declaration that is mobilising political will, community commitment, resources and action, and securing commitments needed to end suffering caused by NTDs. The tracker also holds endorsers of the Kigali Declaration accountable for the commitments they made.
There are four primary types of commitments that organisations can make through the tracker: financial, health product (including medicines, diagnostics, and supply chain), policy, and in-kind (including technical assistance and staff time). The tracker allows users to disaggregate commitments by type, stakeholder group, theme, geography, and other valuable data points. From this data, partners can see the distribution of resources committed for NTDs.
The tracker provides a current and evolving overview of secured NTD resources. Partners can access their tracker accounts at any time to update existing commitments and add new ones. A detailed verification process exists to ensure that committed funds are secured and not duplicated.
Thoko Elphick-Pooley, Executive Director of Uniting to Combat NTDs, said, “This new tool represents a major step forward in our ability to better understand the current funding landscape for NTDs and more effectively address shortfalls and gaps. By publishing comprehensive information on committed resources, the tracker is providing a new level of transparency that will enable us to hold each other accountable and effectively mobilize new resources that are required to end the suffering caused by these diseases.”
Formally launched in June of last year at the Kigali Summit on Malaria and NTDs, the Kigali Declaration has already galvanised the largest collective financial commitment towards NTDs to date. As of January 2023, more than US$1.7 billion and 19 billion tablets have already been pledged. These commitments are helping to create the momentum needed to deliver the targets set out in the WHO NTD road map (2021-2030), as well as achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3. Totals represented in the tracker will continue to fluctuate and grow as partners review and update their commitment information in real time, and new commitments are made over the next seven years.
Uniting to Combat Neglected tropical Diseases continues to welcome endorsements and commitments for the Kigali Declaration on NTDs. Today, on World NTD Day, several new commitments have been made from endemic countries, donors and private sector partners including Ghana, GSK and Anesvad Foundation.
Thoko Elphick-Pooley added: “We are thrilled to see the incredible progress in fighting NTDs buoyed by new commitments from our partners. NTDs have a devastating impact on the lives of affected individuals and communities, and it is crucial that we increase resources and action to control and eliminate these diseases. These new commitments are to be celebrated. However, we can’t stop here. There is a financing crisis for NTDs. More resources are needed if we are to reach the targets of the WHO 2030 NTD road map and safeguard the hard-won gains of the past decades. This World NTD Day we are urging world leaders to act now, act together and invest in NTDs by endorsing the Kigali Declaration on NTDs and making commitments.”