The END Fund

The World Health Organization reported a staggering drop of 172 million people no longer requiring treatment for lymphatic filariasis in 2024, the single largest yearly drop in more than a decade. If all of these people formed a single country, it would be the 9th largest country in the world. Click the link to learn more about the END Fund’s programmatic experts examining these successes in Nigeria and show how such global progress can be traced back to an array of locally driven solutions. https://bit.ly/4s6xm1F

Across many African countries including Kenya, millions of children are affected by intestinal worms and schistosomiasis — diseases that undermine health, learning, and long-term economic opportunity. But Kenya is setting an example in surveying for these disease. In early 2025, nationwide prevalence surveys were conducted to better understand where infections persist and how treatment strategies can be optimized. Students are providing samples that will help shape targeted interventions and ensure resources are used where they’re needed most. The END Fund, alongside the Ministry of Health, Kenya, Amref Health Africa, and AIHD, has supported the delivery of more than 57 million treatments for intestinal worms and schistosomiasis across Kenya. Read more about how this effort has already reduced the number of people requiring treatment by millions: https://bit.ly/4if7JH9

My 2025: A Year of Ink, Insight, and Resilience This year was a powerful reminder that I am, at heart, a storyteller who has never truly put down the pen. While I spent days editing narratives and mentoring fellow journalists, my own passion for pursuing stories—especially in health and science—remained my driving force. The year took me from data to drama in the field. I traveled to Kenya’s Rift Valley with researchers collecting data on Soil-Transmitted Helminths, witnessing the raw science of stool and urine analysis. Turning that into a story for The END Fund was a privilege; it felt crucial to document a key piece of Kenya’s fight against Neglected Tropical Diseases. Later, in Lodwar, I came face-to-face with the brutal reality of Visceral Leishmaniasis—a raw, urgent battle where the scarcity of blood meant the difference between life and death. Science reporting is a battlefield, and this year, I was squarely in it. Beyond the field, I focused on building our collective capacity. I planned and moderated a Science Media Café for Talkafrica journalists, supported by Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi), demystifying the complex world of clinical trials. I also organized a webinar on freelancing, bringing together editors and journalists to share hard-won wisdom on navigating that path. Professionally, the year brought new horizons: attending a safety and coordination meeting with the ACOS Alliance in London, and the honour of being elected to the board of the @AMWIK-Association of Media Women in Kenya. Then, in November, the most personal story hit home. The statistic of Mpox became a face: my daughter’s. We lived through that fear, held in what felt like a divine palm, and thankfully, she recovered. We pulled through. God held us in his palm. Looking back, 2025 was a year of depth, challenge, and profound gratitude. It was good. Thank you, 2025. #Journalism2025 #HealthJourno #Storyteller #YearInStories #Resilience #KenyaMedia #NTDs #WomenOnBoards #WomenInLeadership

Female Genital Schistosomiasis (FGS) is often referred to as the neglected of the neglected diseases. Despite affecting an estimated 56 million women and girls across Africa, FGS is still too often misdiagnosed as a sexually transmitted infection or even cervical cancer. "Why is it that we allow such suffering to continue to happen and destine innocent girls and women to suffer from a treatable disease when the drugs are already donated by Merck KGaA and the diagnosis is just a matter of increased awareness by service providers. Women are being robbed of their rights to bear children and are destined to stigma and discrimination, a higher rate of domestic violence based on a STD misdiagnosis - not to mention a higher risk of acquiring HIV. It is truly unethical to continue to let FGS be a modern day disease," says Dr. Solomon Zewdu, CEO of the END Fund. To address this gap, in partnership with LVCT HEALTH, we are supporting the Ministry of Health, Kenya — with generous investment from Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) — to integrate FGS screening and treatment into existing sexual and reproductive health services, including cervical cancer screening platforms. This approach means women receive care in one visit, in one setting, from providers trained to recognize the disease — reducing stigma, improving diagnosis, and ensuring access to treatment with praziquantel. The program has already yielded tangible results: ✅ Health workers report high confidence diagnosing and managing FGS ✅ Women describe feeling relief after years of misdiagnosis ✅ Integration has proven highly acceptable across both providers and clients ✅ Costs per patient continue to decline as integration scales ✅ Community outreach has become a critical channel for case identification Through this locally led, system-strengthening health care service model, more than 3,000 health workers across Ethiopia, Ghana, and Madagascar have already been trained through complementary global initiatives. Learn more about FGS in Africa: https://bit.ly/443LpKX

We are delighted to welcome Dr. Shamma Khalifa Al Mazrouei to the END Fund Board. Dr. Shamma serves as Acting Director General of the Mohamed bin Zayed Foundation for Humanity, where she leads the Foundation in its mission to advance human potential and opportunity. Under her steer, the Foundation stewards multi-year investments to strengthen health systems, combat preventable diseases, and support communities to thrive. This includes through the landmark Reaching The Last Mile Fund, which works to accelerate the elimination of two neglected tropical diseases from Africa and Yemen. Her extensive expertise and strategic leadership will make a valuable contribution to advancing the END Fund’s mission to end neglected tropical diseases. We are honored to welcome Dr. Shamma Khalifa Al Mazrouei to the Board.

The Jackson Kemper Foundation match has been extended until Friday, December 19th. All donations, up to $20,000 per single gift, will be matched up to a total of $175,000, meaning you can double your impact throughout this holiday season. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is one of three countries with the highest prevalence of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) globally. Out of the country's 107 million population, 84 million people are at risk and require treatment for these diseases. Continued support is essential to advance global health equity and ensure countries can achieve their elimination goals. Every dollar donated will prove transformative, as treatments for schistosomiasis, intestinal worms, and trachoma cost just $0.11 per person. This means that for every matched dollar, you could help 18 kids remain healthy and in school, unlocking the many opportunities that accompany a complete education, and protect against sight loss, ensuring individuals do not face the distress that comes with losing their vision. Help see the end of NTDs: give the gift of a brighter future this holiday season – with double the impact. Give today: https://lnkd.in/eb_UaM_c

When international aid slows, collaboration can keep progress moving. 90% of philanthropic collaboratives, including the END Fund report growing demand—and a flexible, locally driven approach to funding can meet the moment. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/ewx77ibT The Bridgespan Group

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, treatments to prevent blindness from trachoma or keep a child healthy in school and protected from malnutrition, pain, and anemia due to parasitic worms cost just $0.11 per person. With deworming treatments proven to decrease school absenteeism by 25%, increase the likelihood of girls continuing their education into secondary school, and support adults in earning 13% more per hour, and working 17% more hours per week, every investment can prove transformational for communities. Thanks to the Jackson Kemper Foundation’s generous matching of donations - up to $20,000 per single donation, for a total matched value of $175,000 until December 15th - your gift will go even further this giving season. Maximize your impact today and Help See the END of NTDs. https://bit.ly/4pt6Qh9

In a world where funding grows more volatile by the day, sustaining progress in global health demands a different kind of partnership – rooted in local leadership, shared investment, and trust. At October’s #WorldHealthSummit, this truth came into focus. In her article titled, “Sustaining Progress Through Volatility,” Carol Karutu, VP of International Programs at the END Fund, reflects on how to protect hard-won gains against neglected tropical diseases in an era of shifting global aid. From Kenya’s rapid progress toward elimination through integrated care, to Ethiopia’s extraordinary scale-up powered by trust-based co-financing, she shows how resilient systems are built when countries are firmly in the driver’s seat and philanthropy plays its most catalytic role. Read more about the future of NTD funding: https://bit.ly/48zGAf7

Recently, representatives from the Gates Foundation, Mohamed bin Zayed Foundation for Humanity, Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), the END Fund and The Carter Center traveled to Ethiopia. The delegation met with the Ministers of Health, State Ministers of Finance, Water and Energy, and Health to discuss the need for a more robust multi-sectoral approach to plan and delivery services as a shared commitment to eliminating neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in the country. Since the Reaching the Last Mile Fund began supporting Ethiopia’s lymphatic filariasis and river blindness elimination programs, nearly three million fewer people require treatment for river blindness and 3.5 million people no longer need treatment for lymphatic filariasis. Ethiopia provides a valuable example of how countries have begun the shift towards more sustainable, multi-sectoral country-led health solutions. “Ethiopia’s tangible advancement in integrated services makes NTDs integration into primary health care and national financing structures simply a matter of activating the process and not an advocacy matter. It further reflects the growing commitment from the Ministry of Health to own, lead and co-manage these programs alongside its partners in full transparency,” said Dr. Solomon Zewdu. “The collaborative philanthropy that the RLMF group represents is not just a fiscal opportunity for countries, but a holistic and mutually accountable support to a country-led and managed disease elimination program.”