In preparation for World NTD Day on January 30, 2025, the World NTD Day Japan Preparatory Committee (organizer: NTDs Youth Organization) will hold the "Second Neglected Tropical Disease Contest," open to students from junior high school through university and graduate school. The GHIT Fund is pleased to support the contest again.

Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are infectious diseases, primarily 21 infectious diseases designated by the World Health Organization (WHO), that affect more than 1.6 billion people worldwide. Particularly prevalent in communities in low-income countries, they threaten the health and livelihoods of many people, yet as the word “neglected” implies, there is still a lack of understanding and interest in these NTDs. Due to a lack of funding and human resources, little progress has been made in the research and development of diagnostics, vaccines, and drugs for combatting them, and many people still do not have access to appropriate medical care.

The goals of this contest are to provide people with a greater awareness of these oft-overlooked NTDs and a better understanding of the current situation surrounding them, and to promote activities aimed at achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The GHIT Fund believes that it is extremely important for the younger generation to see NTDs as a personal issue and for them, together with Japanese companies and organizations, to think about and announce ways in which they can help combat NTDs. We are therefore pleased to sponsor and provide support to this contest.

Last year, the contest was held for the first time in Japan, in the form of the "First Neglected Tropical Disease Student Contest." A total of 79 participants in 35 teams submitted applications. Sixty percent of the entrants surveyed reported they “learned about NTDs for the first time through this contest”, with one winner stating, “the more I’ve learned about NTDs, the more strongly I feel this is an issue that needs to be resolved."

The contest is divided into two categories: Category A, "Disseminating information on NTDs in an easy-to-understand way - NTDs in your own words," and Category B, "Considering what Japan can do about NTDs - How can we control NTDs?" Participants compete through individual or group presentations in each category.

Winners will be announced in an award ceremony held on January 30, 2025, World NTD Day. The GHIT Fund will also present a special GHIT Prize. We encourage you to spread the word about this contest to the younger generation and look forward to receiving many submissions.

■Second Neglected Tropical Disease Contest Application Overview (only in Japanese)

https://www.ntds-youth-japan.org/our-project/contest/

* The NTDs Youth Organization will be the organizer of this contest. Please refer to the NTDs Youth Organization website for contest application details.

■Second Neglected Tropical Disease Contest Press Release (only in Japanese)

https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000003.000134800.html

■Click here for an event report on the 2023 contest

https://www.ghitfund.org/newsroom/events/detail/427/en