The importance of neglected tropical diseases in sustaining leprosy programmes

International attention and funding has been focused on killing disease such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis, for example through Millennium Development Goal 6. Until recently, other diseases responsible for considerable morbidity affecting an estimated one billion people, as well as mortality, had been relatively neglected. Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) programme is an initiative that brings together efforts to tackle a group of 17 neglected diseases that affect over one billion people worldwide. This grouping includes leprosy and provides an opportunity for leprosy programmes to work synergistically with other disease programmes in a more efficient and sustainable way. NTDs have much in common. They often co-exist and are associated with poverty, affecting large numbers of people who lack visibility and a political voice. Many of the programmes addressing individual NTDs have worked in isolation through vertical programmes with disease specific funding streams. Like leprosy, many of those affected by NTDs experience stigma and discrimination with women, children and migrants being especially vulnerable. There are also common underlying causes based on poverty, poor environments, inequity and complex social determinants. Five different approaches are proposed to tackle NDTs, intensive case management by early diagnosis and treatment is the approach used in leprosy but it is also the approach used for Buruli ulcer, Chagas disease, human African trypanosomiasis, leishmaniasis and yaws. Clearly there are opportunities for integration between leprosy and other NTDs where they co-exist for example in training, implementation, supervision, drug distribution, monitoring and evaluation. A framework has been proposed to analyse NTD control partnerships. The potential to develop such