Consortium pushes for stronger action against neglected tropical diseases

A research consortium working to strengthen collaboration in the fight against Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) in Sub-Saharan Africa has met at the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), bringing together experts from Malawi, Zambia and Japan.

The consortium is promoting a One Health approach, which recognises the links between human health, animal health and the environment in preventing and controlling disease.

The meeting brought together specialists in human health, veterinary medicine and science education to discuss approaches to tackling NTDs including sleeping sickness, rabies and leishmaniasis.

Elisha Chatanga, acting head of veterinary pathology and clinical studies at LUANAR, said Malawi was making progress in addressing NTDs, and that efforts were under way to ensure research findings could benefit communities directly.

He said there was a need to strengthen diagnostic capacity, particularly for emerging diseases such as leishmaniasis.

“In terms of diseases like leishmaniasis, which is one of them that is emerging, we suggest that we need to improve diagnostics.

“There are some methods that have been developed, so we are promoting that these methods can be adopted by regulatory authorities so that they can be used in our hospitals to diagnose these diseases,” Mr Chatanga said.

He said improving access to reliable diagnostic methods would help health facilities identify diseases more effectively and support timely treatment.

The consortium also discussed rabies prevention, with particular attention on rural communities.

University of Zambia lecturer Walter Muleya said greater efforts were needed to improve dog vaccination coverage in rural areas, where the risk of rabies transmission remained a concern.

He said while many urban areas already had relatively high levels of dog vaccination, rural communities required increased attention to prevent transmission and protect both animals and people.

Rabies is primarily transmitted to humans through infected animals, meaning effective animal disease control is considered central to protecting human health under the One Health approach.

LUANAR vice-chancellor Professor Emmanuel Kaunda said addressing NTDs should also be viewed as a human rights issue, given that poverty and limited access to essential services increase the vulnerability of disadvantaged communities.

He called for greater resource mobilisation to address poverty and other underlying factors contributing to the persistence of NTDs in the region.

“As a country we must ensure that as we are providing drugs to animals, we must also make sure that we are including those factors affecting human beings to help control the living of the whole ecosystem.

“As we are dealing with an animal disease, we must also be thinking on the other effects on human beings, so it is a very important programme,” Professor Kaunda said.

The consortium’s discussions went beyond treating individual diseases, with participants emphasising the need for coordinated interventions involving communities, health professionals, veterinarians, researchers, policymakers and educators.

The NTDs Core-to-Core Project under the One Health approach is funded by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) and is scheduled to run from 2025 to 2028.