Kikundi's Sixth Site Visit Strengthens NTD Advocacy and Domestic Resource Mobilization
From 2–6 October 2026, 23 NTD program managers from across Africa gathered in Rwanda for Kikundi's sixth site visit. The visit combined practical training in advocacy and domestic resource mobilization (DRM), country experience sharing, peer learning, and discussions on the future of Kikundi.
The visit began with participants travelling from Kigali to the University of Global Health Equity (UGHE) in Butaro, Rwanda's Northern Province. The discussions centered on a challenge shared by many national NTD programs: "How can countries sustain progress towards NTD control and elimination amid declining external funding?"
Over the following days, participants explored practical ways to strengthen domestic financing, make better use of existing resources, and translate advocacy efforts into concrete actions.
Learning from Country Experiences
The first workshop day brought together experiences from The Gambia, Tanzania, Cameroon, and Malawi, highlighting different approaches to advocacy, health program integration, and domestic resource mobilization.
Facilitated by Andie Tucker and Mandie Tharp from the Task Force for Global Health, in collaboration with GLIDE, the workshop encouraged participants to learn from these experiences and reflect on opportunities within their own countries.
Tanzania's experience, shared by Dr. Clare Jones Mwansasu, illustrated how NTD programs can engage district and regional structures to influence local health budgets. Using the Comprehensive Council Health Plan (CCHP), she demonstrated the importance of understanding the planning and budgeting cycle, engaging local decision-makers, and ensuring that NTD activities are included in district priorities.
Through group exercises, participants mapped their national budget cycles, identified key decision-makers, and explored opportunities to mobilize financial and in-kind resources.
Turning Evidence into Effective Advocacy
On the second workshop day, the focus shifted to building stronger advocacy cases using evidence. Participants explored how existing program data, including disease burden, survey results, budgets, and implementation plans, can support funding requests. Discussions emphasized the importance of adapting advocacy messages to different decision-makers and clearly communicating the resources needed and their expected impact.
The workshop also introduced an NTD return-on-investment (ROI) calculator, demonstrating how economic evidence, including potential health-system savings and productivity gains, can strengthen the case for investment.
Participants also recognized that economic arguments are not always sufficient. In some contexts, particularly as countries approach elimination, equity, national commitments, and public health priorities may provide more compelling reasons for continued investment. The sessions concluded with participants identifying realistic advocacy opportunities and outlining practical next steps to pursue within their national programs.
Reflecting on Kikundi's Progress and Future
The visit also provided an opportunity to reflect on Kikundi's achievements and areas for improvement. Lincoln Pothan presented findings from Kikundi's monitoring and evaluation activities, highlighting progress in community governance, professional development, engagement, and knowledge sharing. Participants discussed how to improve participation in Kikundi's online platform, facilitate greater exchange of country resources and experiences, and strengthen mentorship opportunities.
An additional session led by Alex Pavluck from Sight savers introduced AMPLIFY and explored the potential of artificial intelligence to support NTD program management, including practical applications and considerations around data reliability and security.
After returning to Kigali, members of Kikundi Leadership Council and development team facilitated further discussions on the future of Kikundi and how it could better respond to members' needs.
Mentorship emerged as an important theme. Reflecting on her professional development journey, Prof. Emilienne Epee from Cameroon emphasized that "Mentorship opens doors," encouraging colleagues to continue investing in learning, advocacy, and leadership development.
Learning from Rwanda's Experience with NTD Integration
The final technical sessions took place in Kigali, with contributions from the Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC). Dr. Ladislas Nshimiyimana, Rwanda's NTD Program Manager, shared Rwanda's experience of integrating NTD activities into broader health programs to maximize available resources.
Examples included shared surveillance, personnel, transportation, logistics, training, and the integration of NTD messages into existing health communication activities.
The discussions explored practical challenges related to coordination, procurement, resource allocation, and monitoring, while encouraging participants to consider approaches that could be adapted to their own countries.
The visit concluded with a visit to the Kigali Genocide Memorial, where participants learned about the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, honored the victims, and reflected on Rwanda's journey of recovery, resilience, and unity.
Taking the Learning Forward
Beyond the presentations and workshops, the Rwanda site visit created opportunities for program managers to exchange experiences, challenge assumptions, and explore solutions to common problems. During the closing reflections, Dr. Piham Gnossike, Chair of Kikundi, encouraged participants to put their learning into practice and continue sharing their experiences through the Community.
The visit reinforced a central message: Sustaining progress against NTDs requires strong advocacy, evidence-informed decisions, greater domestic investment, and collaboration across programs and sectors.
For Kikundi, the value of bringing program managers together lies not only in what they learn during the visit, but in how they apply that learning to strengthen their programs and support one another long after the visit ends.