Neglected Tropical Diseases
An alliance between five European foundations – Fondazione Cariplo, Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian, Fondation Mérieux, Nuffield Foundation and Volkswagen Stiftung – to support research by African scholars against Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), a group of illnesses that continue to be overlooked both scientifically and therapeutically but are extremely aggressive, with one-sixth of the world’s population suffering from them. NTDs affect poor populations – 100% of countries classified as ‘low-income’ are affected by at least five NTDs simultaneously – in areas with a tropical climate. Of all the areas, sub-Saharan Africa is especially affected.
The Foundations have budgeted €3 million (€850,000 from Fondazione Cariplo), to be allocated via a call for proposals to junior and senior African researchers (all with PhDs) required to take part – during their studies – in a mentorship with a European research institute. This serves as a means to invest in African human capital and at the same time to create a network of trans-national collaborations.
The high-profile scientific initiative awards its research grants via a peer review process that meets the most rigorous standards and concludes with a final selection meeting. The winning research projects apply a cross-sectoral methodological approach and explore certain scientific topics in depth by correlating them with specific local requirements.
As part of the programme, three editions of “The African Fellowship Programme on Neglected Communicable Tropical Diseases and Related Public Health Research” call for proposals have been implemented. The first edition, in 2008, led to support for 14 research projects (with a financial commitment of €1.2 million). The second edition began in March 2009 and ended in February 2010 with the awarding of another nine research grants (totalling about €1 million). The third, completed in February 2012, awarded a further 10 research grants, for a total commitment of over €800,000.
The project represents a great opportunity to develop ‘African’ capacity to conduct research and lay the foundations for the defeat of NTDs, diseases neglected not due to their rarity but because, despite their enormous spread, are ‘forgotten’. As evidence, bear in mind that under 1% of the 1393 active ingredients registered between 1975 and 2000 are associated with the treatment of an NTD.
However, unlike other infectious diseases, NTDs have not aroused the interest of policymakers, with recent exceptions. The initiative therefore also serves as a major opportunity for growth for the Foundations that have signed up for the partnership, to position themselves as leaders in the sector and simultaneously achieve the objectives of the World Health Organization, which has identified NTDs as an issue to which the attention of global society should be drawn.