The 19th meeting of the WHO Strategic and Technical Advisory Group for Neglected Tropical Diseases (STAG-NTD) will be held at WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, on 8–9 April 2026. Attendance will be both in-person and virtual.
STAG-NTD reconvenes this year following the merger in 2025 of WHO’s Global NTD Programme and Global Malaria Programme. The newly-established WHO Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases Department (MNT), directed by Dr Daniel Ngamije Madandi, ensures Secretariat functions.
Themes discussed will include the vision and priorities for MNT and STAG-NTD; progress and challenges in implementing the NTD road map 2021−2030; the impact of financial cuts on NTD programmes; the cost estimation for implementing the road map 2021−2030; multi-disease approaches and integration towards sustainability; climate change and NTDs; One Health; the research and development blueprint for NTDs; supply chain and management of NTD medicines; the mid-term evaluation of the NTD road map (2021−2025); and progress with the data collection and analysis cycle. STAG-NTD members will also receive updates on previous recommendations and progress reports from four STAG-NTD working groups.
STAG-NTD – the principal advisory group to WHO for the control, elimination and eradication of NTDs – reports directly to the Director-General of WHO. Its mandate is to advise WHO on overall global policies and strategies, ranging from delivery of health services to monitoring of implementation, and from sustainability of interventions to cross-sectoral coordination. Its remit is to provide WHO with high-quality, well considered advice and recommendations on public health matters considered critical to achieve the goals, targets and milestones set in the NTD road map.
STAG-NTD membership has recently been renewed and extended to 20 global experts with broad expertise across NTD technical areas and familiarity with the challenges faced by programmes and partners within the context of health systems in NTD-endemic countries.
STAG-NTD is currently chaired by Professor Heather Ferguson (University of Glasgow, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) and co-chaired by Professor Wendemagegn Enbiale (Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia).
Attendance
In-person participation is by invitation only.
Virtual participation is open to any interested person or institution. To register please use this link: https://who.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Evrmd5pOSNG9dLA4KQN0Aw