With sadness, the Global Network acknowledges the passing of a true humanitarian-Senator Ted Kennedy from Massachusetts. Although he is so deservedly recognized for his endless legislative accomplishments, we also remember him with reverence for his commitment to the world's poorest, both domestically and abroad. Today and in the coming years as we remember Senator Kennedy, let us honor his legacy by continuing to advocate tirelessly for the health of the world's poorest people.
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"Comprehensive, Africa-wide control of malaria and NTDs together would probably cost no more than $3 billion per year, or just two days of Pentagon spending. If each of the billion people in the rich world devoted the equivalent of one $3 coffee per year to the cause, several million children every year would be spared of death and debility, and the world would be spared the grave risks when disease and despair run unchecked. A new Global Network for Neglected Tropical Disease Control is helping make this opportunity a reality." —Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the Earth Institute, Scientific American January 2007
"It is unacceptable that neglected diseases like leprosy, hookworm, and river blindness cause over 500,000 deaths annually. A total of 13 such diseases afflict the poor in Africa, Asia, and the Americas, and I am hopeful that this [Priority Review Voucher] amendment will work toward reducing deaths and suffering from these diseases." —Senator Sam Brownback, May 2007
"It quickly became clear that this story is not just about the staggering numbers of the world's citizens overwhelmed by HIV, AIDS, TB, and malaria. And it's not just the story about one billion people who are afflicted with disabling, oftentimes stigmatizing, neglected tropical diseases, such as human hookworm infection and elephantiasis... it's all about the faces of dying children and sick mothers who haunt those who have seen them...What struck me, and what I think struck us all...that these challenges are all interconnected." — Former President Bill Clinton Clinton Global Initiative, Closing Remarks
"The world is now paying attention to these [neglected] diseases and making progress in unprecedented ways, with ambitious goals, excellent interventions, and growing evidence of multiple benefits for health. The attention to long-neglected diseases is a positive sign that health is a responsibility shared by the international community." —Dr. Margaret Chan, Director-General of the WHO
"Prospects for controlling the most burdensome neglected diseases on a large scale and in sustainable ways have never looked better."—WHO, Berlin: December 10-12, 2003
