NTDs must not return through the back door
Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) rarely command banner headlines, yet they quietly shape the lives of millions, particularly among the poorest and most vulnerable.
They disfigure, disable and deepen poverty.
For years, Ghana and the global community have fought back with steady success.
Today, however, that progress faces a real danger as deep cuts in official development assistance for global health threaten to slow or even reverse the gains painstakingly made.
The global story of NTDs in the past two decades has largely been one of hope.
Mass drug administration, improved sanitation, vector control and stronger surveillance have reduced the number of people needing interventions and pushed several diseases to the brink of elimination in many countries.
Some nations have even eliminated specific NTDs altogether, proving that these diseases are not intractable.
But international funding for NTD programmes has tightened in recent years as donor priorities shift and global economic pressures mount.
Health experts have repeatedly warned that when financing declines, the diseases do not politely wait, they rather resurge.
As one recurring message at recent NTD forums has stressed, the world risks “losing hard-won gains” if investments are not sustained.
For Ghana, we have every reason to be proud.
The country’s elimination of guinea worm disease remains a public health milestone that won global admiration.
Trachoma and human African trypanosomiasis have also been eliminated as public health problems.
These victories reflect years of coordinated work by the Ghana Health Service, partners, community health volunteers and local leaders.
Yet several NTDs remain endemic. Onchocerciasis (river blindness), lymphatic filariasis, schistosomiasis, Buruli ulcer, leprosy and yaws continue to require vigilance.
But about 12 million people remain at risk of NTDs (see p. 16) Recent reports have also drawn attention to pockets of cutaneous leishmaniasis.
These are diseases that thrive where poverty, limited sanitation and inadequate access to health care persist.
They are also diseases that quickly exploit any weakening of control programmes.
At two recent events marking World NTD Day and related stakeholder engagements, speakers consistently returned to one theme, financing (see p. 20).
The call was clear that without predictable funding, surveillance weakens, drug distribution slows, trained community volunteers drop out and public education efforts fade.
The Daily Graphic notes, thus, that in the realm of NTDs, inconsistency is costly.
The United Nations leadership has repeatedly framed NTDs as diseases of inequality, noting that they flourish where development is uneven and the voiceless are overlooked.
That framing resonates strongly in Ghana’s context.
NTDs disproportionately affect rural and hard-to-reach communities, the very populations national development efforts aim to uplift.
The question, therefore, is not only about health but also about equity and economic sense.
Every case of advanced Buruli ulcer that disables a farmer, every child whose schooling is interrupted by chronic worm infections, and every adult blinded by onchocerciasis carries a social and economic cost.
Prevention and early treatment are far cheaper than managing lifelong consequences.
Ghana cannot afford to rely solely on external donors.
While international support remains vital, the time has come to further domestic ownership of NTD programmes.
Dedicated budget lines, integration of NTD services into primary health care and stronger district-level surveillance systems will help cushion the impact of fluctuating donor flows.
At the same time, Ghana must remain visibly engaged in international NTD initiatives.
Global partnerships provide medicines, technical expertise and research collaboration that no single country can fully mobilise alone.
Showing leadership and commitment also strengthens Ghana’s voice when advocating sustained global support.
There is also a role for corporate Ghana and philanthropy.
Just as businesses invest in education and malaria control, NTD interventions deserve attention.
The results in terms of healthier communities and a more productive workforce benefit the entire economy.
The fight against NTDs has always been described as a marathon, not a sprint.
Ghana has run this race with commendable determination and has crossed important milestones.
But stopping too soon could bring the country back to where it started.
We know that neglected tropical diseases thrive on neglect, that is why the Daily Graphic advocates sustained interest, sustained funding and sustained action as the best way to defeat them.
Our country has shown that elimination is possible.
As the world mark World HTD Day on Saturday January 30, we remind ourselves to protect the gains and press forward until these diseases are truly a thing of the past.
