Total Investment of Approximately USD 8.5 Million in Malaria and NTD R&D Projects with Partners Including MMV, GSK, Tanabe Pharma, Eisai, and DNDi

The Global Health Innovative Technology (GHIT) Fund announced on April 21, 2026, a total investment of approximately JPY 1.37 billion (USD 8.5 million) in five research and development projects targeting malaria and neglected tropical diseases.

The funding supports the development of new drugs with novel mechanisms of action to overcome resistance to existing therapies, focusing on both Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax malaria strains.

Approximately JPY 700 million (USD 4.4 million) is allocated to the preclinical development of an antimalarial drug intended for treatment, chemoprevention, or Single Encounter Radical Cure and Prophylaxis (SECRAP) of malaria.

This project is led by Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), Tanabe Pharma Corporation of Japan, and the University of Georgia in the United States.

The remaining funds support additional R&D initiatives for malaria and neglected tropical diseases, though specific allocations for other projects were not detailed in the announcement.

Malaria affects over 280 million people annually and causes approximately 610,000 deaths worldwide, with more than 95% of cases occurring in Africa and over 75% of those affected being children under five years old.

The GHIT Fund emphasizes the need for compounds that can block transmission and be used across multiple treatment approaches, including acute therapy and relapse prevention, to support disease eradication efforts.

Partners in the broader initiative include GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Eisai, and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi), alongside the lead organizations for the antimalarial preclinical project.

The investment builds on prior GHIT-supported work, including a previous project that received approximately JPY 600 million (USD 3.7 million) in funding.

All figures are presented as reported by the GHIT Fund in its official announcement dated April 21, 2026, with currency conversions based on the rate specified in the release.