- Sustainability
- For Print
- September 28, 2026
Eisai Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Tokyo, CEO: Haruo Naito, “Eisai”) announced today that it has donated 8,250 drinking cups to support the upcoming Mass Drug Administration (MDA) campaign against lymphatic filariasis (LF) in West Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea (PNG). The initiative was made possible through Eisai’s Sustainability One-Coin Donation Project, an employee-led fundraising initiative, and the delivery of the drinking cups was supported by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Toyota Tsusho (PNG) Ltd., Trading as Ela Motors.
LF is one of the neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) designated by the World Health Organization (WHO). Transmitted by mosquitoes, LF can cause pain and fever in addition to chronic conditions, including enlargement of parts of the body due to lymphoedema. These symptoms can make it difficult for affected individuals to work and study and often contribute to poverty. In PNG, where LF remains a public health challenge, the government, with support from WHO, JICA through its Technical Cooperation Project “Project for Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis Phase 2”, and other partners, is preparing to conduct MDA across West Sepik Province, including its many remote and hard-to-access communities. The donated drinking cups will be used by community members when taking medicines during the MDA campaign. By providing cups, the initiative will help reduce the risk of spreading infectious diseases associated with sharing cups and contribute to safer and more hygienic medicine administration by frontline health workers.
Eisai has manufactured diethylcarbamazine (DEC) tablets, a treatment for LF, at its Vizag Plant in India since 2013 and has provided 2.86 billion tablets free of charge to 33 countries through the World Health Organization (WHO) to date (as of June 2026).
Eisai has also supported LF elimination efforts in Papua New Guinea for more than a decade. Since 2013, Eisai has provided approximately 15 million DEC tablets free of charge. During the COVID-19 pandemic, when MDA activities had to be suspended, Eisai provided 50,000 face masks and 35,000 gloves to the PNG National Department of Health in collaboration with JICA, helping MDA activities resume safely. The latest donation builds on these longstanding efforts and reflects Eisai’s continued commitment to supporting communities and frontline health workers working toward the elimination of LF.
The donation was made possible through Eisai’s Sustainability One-Coin Donation Project, under which Eisai employees voluntarily make fixed monthly contributions to initiatives addressing social and sustainability challenges. Launched in April 2026, the project aims not only to support countries affected by NTDs, but also to encourage Eisai employees to view sustainability and global health issues as more relevant to their own lives and to participate in social contribution activities. Over the three-month period through June 2026, approximately JPY 900,000 was raised through employee contributions, with Eisai providing a matching contribution of the same amount, bringing the total to approximately JPY 1.8 million (approximately PGK 48,300). Eisai will continue the employee-led “One-Coin Donation” Project.
The drinking cups donated by Eisai were transported to PNG with the support of JICA and Toyota Tsusho (PNG) Ltd., Trading as Ela Motors, both of which endorsed the objectives of the project. Toyota Tsusho (PNG) Ltd., Trading as Ela Motors supported the transportation of the cups from Japan to Port Moresby Airport, located in the capital of PNG, while JICA supported the importation and customs clearance and is also supporting their onward transportation from Port Moresby to West Sepik Province. On September 22, 2026, a handover ceremony for the donated cups to the PNG National Department of Health was held in Port Moresby with representatives from the relevant organizations. Following their arrival in West Sepik Province, the cups will be distributed by West Sepik Provincial Health Authority (WSPHA) to frontline MDA teams for use during the campaign.
Yasuko Minamida, Executive Director, Sustainability Department at Eisai, commented: “We are sincerely grateful to JICA and Toyota Tsusho (PNG) Ltd., Trading as Ela Motors for their generous support in helping us translate the goodwill of our employees into tangible support for communities in PNG. We hope that the donated drinking cups will help MDA participants take their medication safely and hygienically and contribute to ongoing efforts to eliminate LF. We will continue to work closely with our partners to deliver meaningful support to communities where it is needed.”
Through collaboration with JICA and Toyota Tsusho (PNG) Ltd., Trading as Ela Motors and other partners, Eisai aims to translate the voluntary contributions of its employees into practical support for communities where it is needed. Eisai remains committed to contributing to the elimination of LF and improving access to essential healthcare as part of its human health care (hhc) concept.
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