Translate Email

August 2020

Each month, we share our progress, next steps, and profiles of the people involved in the Global Partnership for Zero Leprosy.

Bill Gallo joins GPZL as Director of Secretariat

We are excited to announce that Mr. Bill Gallo is joining the Global Partnership for Zero Leprosy as our new Secretariat Director. His previous role at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) included leprosy work in the Pacific Islands. Among his many directorial roles, Mr. Gallo served as Senior Advisor to the Pacific Islands, where he liaised between the CDC leadership and ministries of health. Mr. Gallo will join the Secretariat on 1 September. We welcome him to the Partnership.

Working Group Updates

The COVID-19 pandemic has strongly impacted leprosy control and prevention, and in response, GPZL has established three working groups to address the leprosy community’s key challenges during the global health crisis, and spearhead emergency response.

Read about the progress of our three COVID-19 response working groups.

Novartis Kalwe site associates live on-site during COVID-19 lockdown to maintain multi-drug therapy supply chain for WHO donation program

The COVID-19 pandemic has halted many leprosy control and prevention activities globally, putting vulnerable communities further at risk. The Novartis Technical Operations (NTO) Sandoz Kalwe site, located north of Mumbai on India’s west coast, faced new challenges beginning earlier this year, when strict lockdown was enforced in India to reduce the spread of COVID-19. The lockdown measures interrupted key transport routes needed for the site’s multi-drug therapy (MDT) manufacturing and supply, thereby putting leprosy patients’ access to MDT, which is used to cure leprosy, at risk. Recognizing the need for continuous MDT supply, associates at the Kalwe site have been working relentlessly to help persons affected by leprosy. Read more about how the Kalwe site has overcome pandemic-related obstacles.

UN Special Rapporteur Alice Cruz's mandate extended by Human Rights Council

The UN Human Rights Council has extended the mandate of Alice Cruz, UN Special Rapporteur on the elimination of discrimination against persons affected by leprosy and their family members.

Alice has advocated for persons affected by leprosy and their families in this role since November 2017. She recently presented her thematic report at the 44th session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on 7 July 2020. Following her presentation, UNHRC adopted a resolution on the elimination of discrimination against persons affected by leprosy and their family members that extends Alice’s mandate for an additional three years. This mandate extension is announced alongside similar mandate extensions for education, persons with disabilities, international solidarity and extreme poverty, and others. Read more about Alice's mandate.

From Our Partners

Leprosy Research Initiative publishes fifth Annual Report

LRI released their 2019 Annual Report last month. The report details new proposals, research projects, workshops, the LRI Spring Meeting, and the International Leprosy Conference. This account of LRI partners’ and other stakeholders’ contributions includes the work of the LRI Steering Committee and the Scientific Review Committee, in addition to LRI’s support for 33 research projects in 2019.

WHO publishes new interim guidance on NTDs and COVID-19

The World Health Organization’s interim guidance, “Considerations for implementing mass treatment, active case‐finding and population-based surveys for neglected tropical diseases in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic,” published 27 July 2020, offers five strategies to address the burden of NTDs, risk-benefit assessment, and precautionary measures. Find the interim guidance and other partner resources on GPZL’s COVID-19 hub.

Upcoming Events

WHO NTD Webinar: How can WASH help to reach 2030 road map targets?

2 Sep 2020 | Online

The World Health Organization is hosting a series of webinars about the new road map for neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). This webinar explores water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) and how WASH can help reach the 2030 road map targets.

12th NTD NGO Network (NNN) Conference - Online

8-10 September 2020 | Online

With the theme, Accelerating to 2030: Building Resilient NTD Programmes in a Changing World, the 2020 NNN Conference is looking to be the most forward-thinking yet. This free three-day event will feature 18 exciting workshops and two rapid-fire sessions highlighting the BEST Framework’s role in accelerating progress on NTDs toward 2030. There will be a panel discussion and exciting NTD Innovation Prizes.

Working together towards zero leprosy: join the partnership

Membership is open to all who are committed to zero leprosy and the partnership principles. See the current list of partnership members.

Learn more and apply

Global Partnership for Zero Leprosy | www.zeroleprosy.org

STAY CONNECTED

Translate this email:
العربية
Afrikaans
беларуская мова
български
català
中文（简体）
中文（繁體）
Hrvatski
Česky
Dansk
eesti keel
Nederlands
Suomi
Français
Deutsch
Ελληνική
हिन्दी
Magyar
Gaeilge
Indonesia
íslenska
Italiano
日本語
ភាសាខ្មែរ
한국어
македонски јазик
بهاس ملايو
Malti
Norsk
Polski
Português
Português - Portugal
Română
Русский
Español
Kiswahili
Svenska
עברית
Lietuvių
latviešu
slovenčina
slovenščina
српски
தமிழ்
ภาษาไทย
Türkçe
Filipino
украї́нська
Tiếng Việt