Leishmaniasis conference

I was pleased this week  to address a group of over 100 self-professed “Leish-maniacs” – scientists, public health officials and health policy makers from more than 15 countries who have devoted themselves to fighting the disease of Leishmaniasis.  Leishmaniasis does not get much attention, but it is painful, disfiguring disease that can also kill.  It strikes two million people every year in 88 countries.  The five-day conference on Leishmaniasis:  Collaborative Research Opportunities in North Africa and the Middle East, organized by the US National Institutes of Health and the Institut Pasteur de Tunis, is bringing together Tunisian, American and international scientists to create lasting partnerships for research on Leishmaniasis. 

As President Obama recently said in his historic speech at Cairo University, the United States is committed to working with Muslim-majority countries on science and technology, and to help enhance scientific education.  This collaboration is particularly important in the fight against tropical diseases, including Leishmaniasis, which have been neglected for far too long.  Now, as illustrated by this meeting, they are neglected no more.  I’m confident that this week’s symposium will result in mutually beneficial collaborations to improve public health in Tunisia and throughout the region.