The Lancet, Volume 368, Issue 9550, Pages 1865 - 1866 25 November 2006

Peter J Hotez a, David H Molyneux b, Eileen Stillwaggon c, Zvi Bentwich d, Jacob Kumaresan e

We greatly appreciate The Lancet's support of the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Disease Control (GNNTDC).1 The network will assist in advocacy, resource mobilisation, and coordination of the public—private partnerships that are committed to the control or elimination of schistosomiasis, hookworm, lymphatic filariasis, onchocerciasis, trachoma, and other diseases. By tackling those poverty-promoting disorders in developing countries, GNNTDC expects to achieve substantial improvement in the health and wellbeing of the world's poorest people.

The major goals of the conference held at the George Washington University (Oct 26—27, 2006) were to (1) highlight the widespread physical, economic, and social costs of these diseases on impoverished populations in developing countries; (2) explore opportunities for linking neglected tropical disease control with much larger global initiatives for malaria and HIV/AIDS control, especially in sub-Saharan Africa; and (3) emphasise the achievability of neglected tropical disease control in the context of Millennium Development Goal 6.