The neglected tropical diseases (NTD) initiative for Latin America and the Caribbean of the Inter-American Development Bank and the role of geospatial analysis in health programmes.

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) (http://www.iadb.org/en/inter-american-developmentbank,2837.html) is the regional, multilateral development bank for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The largest source of external development financing for the region, the IDB support efforts by LAC countries to reduce poverty and inequality with the aim of bringing about development in a sustainable, climate-friendly way. Of the IDB’s 48 member states, 26 are borrowing countries which own majority shares in the institution. In 2010, the IDB approved an unprecedented 170 projects and US$ 570 million in grant financing. The IDB’s Social Protection and Health (SPH) division falls under the social sector and has a total of 56 staff working in the fields of health and social protection with the majority based in country offices of the borrowing countries themselves. The SPH division’s priorities in social protection are: (i) early childhood development (ECD), with focus on infants up to 3 years of age; (ii) youth at risk (in coordination with other business units); and (iii) poverty alleviation programmes.