The END Fund, a leading collaborative philanthropic fund dedicated to ending neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), announced the appointment of Tsitsi Masiyiwa as Board Chair.
She succeeds William (Bill) Campbell, appointed in 2012 as the inaugural Board Chair by the organization’s founders, Legatum. Under his leadership, the END Fund has mobilized resources from more than 6,400 donors to deliver over 1.5 billion treatments through locally-driven NTD programs in 31 countries targeting intestinal worms, schistosomiasis, lymphatic filariasis, river blindness, trachoma, and visceral leishmaniasis.
Speaking on behalf of the END Fund, Campbell said: “Tsitsi Masiyiwa is a deeply respected philanthropist and social entrepreneur, well known for her effective advocacy and exemplary leadership, particularly through her role as Chair and Co-Founder of Higherlife Foundation. The END Fund’s growth and impact has been one of my life’s biggest achievements and there is no one better placed to entrust this to than Tsitsi.”
Tsitsi Masiyiwa has been an integral part of the END Fund’s journey since its inception in 2012. Over the past six years, she has served as a member of the END Fund board, before stepping up to the position of Co-Vice Chair in 2022.
NTDs affect over 1.7 billion people worldwide, with over 40% of the global NTD burden concentrated in Africa. In Kenya, the END Fund has worked closely with the Ministry of Health to transform the country’s Lymphatic Filariasis elimination program. The END Fund provided consistent funding to restart mass drug administration (MDA) in the coastal region, where it was conducted five years in a row resulting in successfully interrupted transmission of the disease. In 2021, the END Fund treated over 11 million people, trained over 27,000 health workers, and distributed treatments worth over $600,00 in value in Kenya.
As Board Chair, Tsitsi will champion the importance of African leaders owning and leading the agenda on addressing the NTD disease burden which, according to the World Health Organization, costs African economies billions of dollars every year in lost revenue.
“It’s an honor to be appointed as Chair of the END Fund,” Tsitsi Masiyiwa said. “Having witnessed the incredible impact of the organization first-hand, I’m excited to lead our efforts towards even greater sustainability by empowering affected communities to take the lead in eliminating NTDs.”
Over the past two decades, Tsitsi Masiyiwa has become a leading philanthropist and advocate for gender equality. In 1996 she co-founded the Higherlife Foundation with her husband Strive. Higherlife Foundation fosters thriving individuals, communities, and sustainable livelihoods through investments across four pillars – health, education, climate-smart agriculture, and disaster preparedness and recovery.
In addition to her role as Chair of the END Fund, Tsitsi Masiyiwa is Chair of Higherlife Foundation, Delta Philanthropies, and Co-Impact.
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