PR94328

ABU DHABI, UAE, Jan. 31, 2022 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

100 landmarks in 32 countries lit up in unity to mark the third annual World

NTD Day on January 30, 2022 including The Bell Tower in Perth, Tokyo Tower,

Great Wall of China, New Delhi Railway Station, Sheikh Zayed Bridge in Abu

Dhabi, Expo 2020 Dubai, Kenyatta International Convention Centre, The Rome

Colosseum, Jet d' Eau, Niagara Falls, CN Tower, Jimmy Carter Presidential

Library, and Christ the Redeemer.

A special focus was placed on notable landmarks in endemic countries including

Bangladesh, Brazil, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia,

Ghana, India, Kenya, Liberia, Mexico, Nigeria, Philippines, Rwanda, South

Sudan, and Sudan. Originally announced in Abu Dhabi in 2019, the 100 'light

ups' aim to shine a light on neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), as World NTD

Day supports the goal of the World Health Organization (WHO) to eliminate at

least one NTD from 100 endemic countries by 2030.  

World NTD Day is a global movement that aims to galvanize the global health

community and engage the public in the urgent effort to end NTDs. This year

Uniting to Combat NTDs used the Day to launch the 100% Committed movement,

which exists to begin securing political and financial commitments in support

of the Kigali Declaration on NTDs.

Thoko Pooley, Executive Director of Uniting to Combat NTDs, said: "Today,

building on the success of the London Declaration on NTDs, and recognising the

changing global landscape, we are using World NTD Day 2022 as a catalyst for

action. We are launching the 100% Committed campaign, a global movement to

secure increased resources for neglected tropical diseases, and crucially to

facilitate political leadership and ownership of NTD programmes from affected

countries, through endorsements and signatories behind the new Kigali

Declaration on NTDs."

Through the UAE helmed diplomatic efforts to obtain official recognition of the

day with several WHO Member States, World NTD Day was officially recognized by

the WHO in May 2021. The Crown Prince Court of Abu Dhabi continues to play a

leading role in building partnerships and supporting  World NTD Day through the

Reaching the Last Mile Initiative (RLM), a portfolio of global health programs

focused on accelerating progress towards disease elimination that are driven by

the personal commitment of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince

of Abu Dhabi.

Nassar Al Mubarak, Senior Director at the Crown Prince Court of Abu Dhabi,

said: "World NTD Day represents an important catalyst to translate awareness

into action – it is not only crucial for the public to know more about these

diseases, but also for donors, endemic countries and other stakeholders to

collaborate to bring an end to NTDs in affected countries. Over the past few

decades, incredible progress has been made towards ending NTDs; however, one in

five people in the most vulnerable communities around the world are still

affected by these preventable and treatable diseases. We are pleased to see the

Day providing a platform for raising awareness through the new 100% Committed

campaign and efforts such as the light-up activation. We hope that this

movement continues to gain traction and spark new partnerships and commitments

necessary to beat NTDs for good."

NTDs are a group of communicable diseases that are preventable and treatable,

yet continue to affect more than 1.7 billion people worldwide, including 1

billion children. There are 20 diseases that cause immeasurable suffering –

they debilitate, disfigure and can be fatal. NTDs create cycles of poverty and

cost developing nations billions of dollars every year.

https://worldntdday.org/

SOURCE  World NTD Day

Image Attachments Links:

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   Caption: Expo 2020 Dubai Al Wasl Plaza - Credit_Chris Pike

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   Caption: Rome Colosseum - Credit_Alessio Rubicondi

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   Caption: Canada Niagara Falls - Credit_Lucas Claxton - GiantShoeCreative

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   Caption: Philippines SM MALL OF ASIA GLOBE_Credit - Erwin Barleta

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   Caption: Great Wall of China, Simatai - Credit_WTown

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   Caption: UAE Emirates Palace - Credit_Jonathan Gibbons

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   Caption: The Helmsley Building in New York

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   Caption: Rwanda Kigali Convention Centre - Credit_Andre Rugema

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   Caption: UNESCO World Heritage Kinderdijk Mills - Credit_Sylvia

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   Caption: Kenya Kenyatta International Convention Centre - Credit_Lameck Ododo