The Third Annual Neglected Tropical Diseases Contest is Held
January 30 every year is the World NTD Day designated by the World Health Organization (WHO). This day is to think about Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) and to connect the world. JPMA is a co-sponsor of World NTD Day 2026, and the NTD Subgroup of the Global Health Subcommittee of the International Affairs Committee participated in the Third Annual Neglected Tropical Diseases Contest, one of the World NTD Day events, as a member of the "World NTD Day Japan Executive Committee". The purpose of this contest is to raise broad understanding and interest in NTDs among the youth generation so that they will see NTDs as their own personal matter and think about what we can do to help. We hope that this contest will help them understand the importance of conquering NTDs and provide them with an opportunity to learn about the various efforts being made by pharmaceutical companies.
Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs)
NTDs is the collective name for a group of 21 tropical infectious diseases caused by parasites and bacteria that are prevalent mainly in tropical and subtropical regions and are closely related to poverty. They are called "neglected tropical diseases" because they have not been considered major diseases by developed countries. They affect one in five people worldwide, or more than 1.4 billion people.
The Third Neglected Tropical Diseases Contest
In the "Third Neglected Tropical Diseases Contest," two categories were selected: Category A, "Communicate in an easy-to-understand way - Do you know what NTDs are? 〜and the B category, "Increase the number of people taking action for NTDs - To conquer NTDs," were established, and entries were freely submitted by everyone from high school students to graduate students. Students expressed many flexible and fresh ideas, and the NTD subgroup selected one of the entries for the Japan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association Award based on the message "Together, we want to deliver drugs and thoughts," which represented the selection criteria.
Contest final judging (January 10, 2026)
Sixteen entries were submitted for the A category and 21 entries for the B category, and the organizations participating in the "World NTD Day Japan Executive Committee" conducted the preliminary screening. In Category A, the contestants submitted 3-minute short videos about knowing, spreading, and taking action on 21 different NTDs. The contestants introduced their motivation for entering the contest and the thoughts they wanted to convey in their short videos, all of which conveyed the need to tackle "neglected" tropical infectious diseases. In the B category, there was a presentation on dengue fever, which could occur and spread in Japan, to promote understanding and action on NTDs, and another presentation that proposed what each of us can do in a comprehensive approach that includes not only vaccines and drug treatment, but also efforts to improve living environments and eliminate discrimination and prejudice. The works presented at the event cut through the difficult phase of knowing, understanding, and then taking action.
World NTD Day Online Event (January 30, 2026)
The event consisted of three parts: a video message from a Japanese official, the award ceremony for the 3rd Neglected Tropical Diseases Contest, and a presentation and panel discussion on the theme of "Next Generation NTD: Change through AI and Technology.
Third Neglected Tropical Disease Contest Awards Ceremony
The Grand Prize (A and B categories), U-18 Special Prize (A and B categories), Japan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association Award, and GHIT Partnership & Innovation Award were presented, and the winners gave their comments.
The Japan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association Award was presented to the team named BIGMA for their entry entitled "Don't Stop at Ignorance, Move on to Knowing. Don't stop at 'ignorance,' move on to 'knowing. -The award was presented to the team name BIGMA for their work entitled "Don't Stop at 'Ignorance'; Move Forward to 'Knowing'. This work proposes concrete actions to "know, spread, and support" by warning through ignorance, pointing out "other people's problem" filters, and motivating people to follow the process of human behavior change. We hope that as many people as possible who see this poster will actually take action.
Winner's Comment
I am very honored to receive the Japan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association Award. Through my research on health communication, I aim to deliver health information to the indifferent population and to change their behavior. In this work, I proposed to use theories of behavioral and cognitive science to design communication and environments that connect people and healthcare by removing the filter of 'otherness' that exists in society. Encouraged by this award, we will develop our research results into actions that lead to social implementation. Thank you very much."
In presenting the award, NTD sub-group member Miwa Jindo, who served as a judge, noted that all the entries were of high quality and that the judging was meaningful. She also praised the winning entries for their distinctive behavioral science-based designs and highly convincing approaches. In particular, he commented, "I was nodding my head in agreement." He said that the QR code leads visitors to the portal site, and the "click" action is highly suggestive in that it can lead to a deeper understanding of NTDs, strengthening commitment through self-determination and leading to the continuation of efforts. He commented that it was a logical proposal based on a scientific analysis of human behavior, and that it was worthy of the Japan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association Award.
Concluding Remarks
This is the third year of the contest, and every year I feel that the students' works and ideas are becoming more sophisticated and refined. We hope that as many people as possible will learn about NTDs through this activity. We would like to thank the NTD Youth Association, a general incorporated association that planned and managed the event, the Global Health Technology Fund (GHIT Fund), the Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, the Japan Alliance for Neglected Tropical Diseases (JAGntd), the non-profit organization SDGs and the Japan Tropical Medicine Association (JPMA), which acted as a member organization as well as the JPMA, for their support. We would like to express our deepest gratitude to SDGs Promise Japan (SPJ) and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi Japan), a non-profit organization.
(Miwa Kando, International Affairs Committee, Global Health Subcommittee)