LUSAKA, Jan. 30 (Xinhua) -- Zambia on Monday joined the rest of the world in commemorating World Neglected Tropical Diseases Day, which falls on Monday, with the government calling on countries to increase investment in the fight against the diseases in order to eliminate them by 2030.
Minister of Health Sylvia Masebo said sustainable financing for neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) was a global health and development success story, with 46 countries having eliminated diseases following increased investment.
However, she said that in recent times a lack of resources has been seen as a significant barrier to the control, elimination, and eradication of the diseases.
"Government is committed to eliminating neglected tropical diseases and has planned to invest in the control and elimination of these diseases. Our aspiration is to ensure that treatment is available, affordable, accessible, and equitably shared to those populations in greatest need," she said.
According to her, concerted actions and sustainable financing were needed to ensure sufficient resources to achieve the World Health Organization (WHO) target of eliminating NTDs by 2030.
"That is why, together and united, we will make the case for investment, and push for concerted action and financing of neglected tropical diseases," she added.
The minister said more than one billion people are affected by NTDs in the world, with half of the global burden being in Africa, while more than 13 million people in Zambia were at risk of being affected.
Meanwhile, the Zambian government has developed a master plan aimed at eliminating NTDs by 2030.
The minister said the plan, which was aligned with the WHO roadmap, was aimed at guiding the implementation of programs to tackle the diseases in the country.
NTDs, according to the WHO, are a diverse group of communicable diseases that prevail in tropical and subtropical conditions in 149 countries and affect more than one billion people, costing developing economies billions of dollars every year.
NTDs, listed by the WHO, include Buruli ulcer, guinea-worm disease, leprosy, lymphatic filariasis, river blindness, rabies, soil-transmitted helminthiases and trachoma, among others. ■