Devex: South-South cooperation: Protecting indigenous peoples from NTDs
Mirta Roses Periago, special envoy for the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases and former director of the Pan American Health Organization

“Last week, the international development community celebrated the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation, an opportunity for stakeholders to examine how developing and emerging countries can share knowledge, exchange best practices and pursue joint projects to generate tangible solutions to development challenges. … A closer look at Brazil and Venezuela’s joint commitment to control and eliminate neglected tropical diseases within the Yanomami community — a nomadic indigenous tribe of approximately 35,000 people — highlights the key role South-South cooperation has had in reaching populations that need key health interventions. Equally important, this successful model can be replicated within Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as across the globe…” (9/18).