Political Declaration to End TB adopted: And now on to Action!

Picture: Participants chant to end tuberculosis during the closing segment of the second high-level U.N. meeting on the fight against TB. Photo by: Loey Felipe / UN Photo

The political declaration is strongly embedded in multi-sectoral collaboration, and the recent WHO MAF-TB operational guide provides clear steps in guiding countries. In addition to the declaration, The UNGA week also brought numerous announcements and commitments for TB response. The TB community can be optimistic, yet will be watching next steps with critical eyes. The real work has to start now at country-level in translating the commitments into action.

Prior to the UNHLM, the TBPPM LN organised a Friday forum followed by a newsletter emphasizing the urgent need for a comprehensive and collaborative approach to advocate for quality TB care during the UNHLM. Our eminent panel of TB advocates and leaders resonated with key points from the declaration as well.

Political Declaration, Point 47. “Further commit to strengthen notification of all people diagnosed with tuberculosis, by public, private and community-based health care providers to national health information systems, facilitated by the expanded use of secure, confidential and digital case-based surveillance, with full respect for human rights, in line with highest applicable standards and data privacy laws, and to improve civil registration and vital statistics registers (CRVS), to allow for tracking of the tuberculosis epidemic, including drug resistant forms, and its impact, with disaggregation by age, sex, and other characteristics relevant to national contexts, and to strengthen national capacity for the use and analysis of such data, including by improving real-time data collection, reporting and automation, to inform and support evidence-based decision-making and strengthen accountability”

TBPPM LN welcomes the declaration and the global commitments which followed the UNHLM and will be standing side by side with all members to now implement the advancement in areas of need. While words matter, the energy and momentum created matters even more when taken forward into action. We will continue to advocate on global and local needs and please share exciting updates for our global TB community.

Together we can make quality TB care available for all people by all providers