The recently released Global Tuberculosis Report 2024 provides an updated overview of the challenges and progress in the global fight against tuberculosis (TB) during 2023. TB affected 10.8 million people in 2023, claiming approximately 1.25 million lives, including 161,000 deaths among those living with HIV. Despite TB being a preventable and treatable disease, it remains the leading cause of death from an infectious agent. Advances in diagnostics, treatment options, and updated guidelines have not been enough to overcome the slow pace of progress, largely due to insufficient global funding for the TB response.
In light of these findings, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and the WHO Civil Society Task Force on TB have issued a joint statement emphasizing the need for urgent action to fulfill the commitments made by UN Member States at the second UN General Assembly High-level Meeting on the Fight Against Tuberculosis (UNHLM-TB) in September 2023. During this historic event, Member States adopted a political declaration with ambitious targets to be achieved by 2027, which include:
- Diagnosing and treating 90% of people with TB.
- Providing TB preventive treatment to 90% of those eligible.
- Ensuring 100% of TB cases are tested using rapid diagnostic tests.
- Licensing at least one new TB vaccine within 5 years.
- Mobilizing at least US$ 22 billion annually by 2027, with US$ 5 billion allocated for TB research.
The joint statement expresses concern over the current insufficient funding for TB, with the Global Tuberculosis Report 2024 indicating that in 2023, only US$ 5.7 billion was available for TB programs. To meet the targets set in the political declaration, funding must increase nearly fourfold to US$ 22 billion annually by 2027. Without adequate investment, these ambitious goals will remain unachievable.
The statement further calls on all stakeholders to:
- Significantly increase funding for TB control, both domestically and internationally, including meaningful involvement of civil society and TB-affected communities.
- Empower civil society and affected communities to take an active role in the planning, decision-making, implementation, and monitoring of national TB strategies.
- Provide robust social support and protection to prevent catastrophic costs for those affected by TB.
- Ensure equitable and uninterrupted access to affordable, high-quality TB prevention, care, and innovative tools, including drugs and vaccines.
The WHO and the Civil Society Task Force emphasize that the response to TB must be rights-based, equitable, multisectoral, and innovative. They reaffirm the collective commitment to end TB: “Yes, we can end TB. Let’s do it together.”
Media Contacts:
- WHO Media Team
- Email: [email protected]
Related Resources:
- Global Tuberculosis Report 2024
- Joint Statement by the WHO Director-General and the WHO Civil Society Task Force on TB
- Fact sheets on Tuberculosis (October 29, 2024)
