2/23/2010
Doctors Without Borders
Over 1 billion people are infected with one of the 14 diseases defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). These are the most common infections in the 2.7 billion people living on less than $2 a day and affects those often marginalized and forgotten by governments, left to suffer in silence. NTDs are diverse but all cause severe disability or death, and bring a major economic burden on endemic countries.
In 2006, USAID began a $100 million five-year NTD control program concentrated on 5 of the 14 WHO identified NTDs, which has since been expanded to reach an annual budget of $65 million in 2010, as well as extending the program aim to 30 countries.
