WHO calls for intensified actions to eradicate Tuberculosis in South East Asia region

Tags: International News

On World Tuberculosis Day (24 March) the World Health Organisation (WHO) has called for intensified actions to eradicate the disease in the South East Asian region which bears the world’s highest TB burden.

An overview of the news

  • WHO highlighted the urgent need to advance innovations, better address social and economic determinants, and improve multi-sectoral collaboration.

TB burden in Southeast Asia

  • In 2021, the region is expected to account for more than 45 percent of global TB incidence and more than half of global TB deaths.

  • According to WHO, the COVID-19 crisis has exacerbated key social and economic determinants of TB such as poverty and malnutrition, pushing millions of people in the region into extreme poverty.

  • An estimated 7 million additional TB cases and 1.5 million additional TB deaths could occur between 2022 and 2026 across the region.

  • In 2022, the budget allocation for TB programs in the region is set to reach approximately US$1.4 billion.

World Health Organisation (WHO)

  • The World Health Organisation is a specialised agency of the United Nations which was founded on 7 April, 1948.

  • Headquarters of WHO : Geneva, Switzerland

  • Members : 194 countries

  • Director General of WHO:  Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus  of Ethiopia.

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