WHO’s 2025 Global Report Shows Progress, Gaps in Fight Against Neglected Diseases

The report coincides with the 20th anniversary of WHO consolidating its fragmented disease-specific programmes into a single coordinated effort to tackle 20 different NTDs.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has released its third Global Report on Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), providing a comprehensive overview of the progress made—and challenges still ahead—towards eliminating these long-overlooked diseases by 2030, as outlined in the Road map for neglected tropical diseases 2021–2030. The 2025 report highlights notable achievements over the past year across all six WHO regions, while also issuing a strong call to action to address funding shortfalls, equity gaps, and data weaknesses.

“Despite multiple challenges, NTD programmes continue to deliver important results, freeing large sectors of populations from these ancient diseases,” said Dr Daniel Ngamije Madandi, Acting Director for Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases at WHO. “This report is a tribute to their dedication and hard work as well as to the generous support of all partners involved.”

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Two Decades of Unified Action: A Milestone in Global Health

The report coincides with the 20th anniversary of WHO consolidating its fragmented disease-specific programmes into a single coordinated effort to tackle 20 different NTDs. This integrated approach has fostered close collaboration among pharmaceutical companies, development partners, philanthropic organizations, and national governments, leading to a significant reduction in the global burden of these diseases—which disproportionately affect the world’s poorest populations.

Since 2010, global efforts have led to a 32% decrease in the number of people requiring interventions for NTDs, from 2.2 billion to 1.495 billion in 2023. Seven more countries achieved elimination status for at least one NTD in 2024, bringing the global tally of elimination successes to over 50 in the past decade.

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Key Progress Highlights from the 2025 Report

The report tracks both disease-specific and cross-cutting advances, with several major milestones achieved over the past year:

📉 Decline in Disease Burden

• Between 2015 and 2021, the disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) attributed to NTDs fell from 17.2 million to 14.1 million.

• NTD-related deaths dropped from 139,000 to 119,000, while the total number of people affected declined from 1.9 billion in 1990 to just over 1 billion in 2021.

💊 Expanding Access to Treatment

• In 2023, more than 867 million people were treated for at least one NTD—18 million more than in 2022.

• A total of 1.8 billion doses of NTD medicines were delivered in 2024 alone.

• Since 2011, 30 billion tablets and vials have been distributed, supported by 12 pharmaceutical manufacturers.

🧪 Breakthroughs in Research and Innovation

• In 2024, WHO launched a global process to identify priority areas for research and development in NTDs.

• Six new medicine formulations, one active pharmaceutical ingredient, and a new dengue vaccine were prequalified by WHO.

📈 Improved Health System Integration

• NTDs are increasingly included in national health strategies and essential service packages.

• Countries are adopting integrated approaches to tackle skin NTDs and improve preventive chemotherapy delivery.

🌍 Wider Advocacy and Global Partnerships

• NTDs gained visibility at major global platforms including the UN General Assembly, UN Human Rights Council, G7, and G20 meetings.

• Strategic partnerships were strengthened with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (on rabies vaccine access) and the Global Health Innovative Technology Fund (on medicines and diagnostics).

🇦🇫 Sustainability and Country Ownership

• By the end of 2024, 14 African countries had developed national plans focused on the sustainability of NTD services, signalling increased local leadership.

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Persistent Challenges Threatening Momentum

Despite these successes, the report does not shy away from highlighting significant setbacks:

💸 Declining Funding Support

• Official development assistance (ODA) for NTDs has dropped by 41% between 2018 and 2023.

• Many programmes remain underfunded, with field operations and service delivery disrupted or delayed as a result.

“Programmes for NTDs continue to be severely disrupted by reduced availability of funding,” the report warns, calling for domestic resource mobilization and a strategic focus on high-impact, cost-effective interventions.

🩺 Gaps in Diagnostics and Health Equity

• Progress remains slow in scaling up diagnostics, particularly for less-known or co-infectious NTDs.

• A lack of gender-disaggregated data and uneven national reporting limits the ability to assess needs and track progress effectively.

💧 Inadequate WASH Infrastructure

• Access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH)—a foundational component in NTD prevention—remains insufficient in many endemic regions.

• This deficiency is compounded by limited protection against catastrophic out-of-pocket health expenses.

A qualitative assessment of road map progress further highlighted urgent needs across four key dimensions: diagnostics, monitoring and evaluation, logistics and access, and sustainable advocacy and funding models.

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Looking Ahead: Renewed Urgency and Global Solidarity

The 2025 report reaffirms the global NTD community’s unwavering commitment to achieving the 2030 targets despite resource constraints. WHO urges governments and partners to adopt a multisectoral, rights-based approach and to embed NTD responses within broader health system strengthening and universal health coverage (UHC) efforts.

“The global NTD community is a real partnership, a community of practice united by shared goals – this report is a reflection of it,” said Dr Madandi.

With political will, strategic funding, and a focus on equity and resilience, WHO believes that ending the neglect of neglected tropical diseases is not only possible—it is within reach.