BRICS countries call for united action to advance global progress against tuberculosis

(en.nhfpc.gov.cn)

Updated: 2014-07-15

BRICS countries have joined together on World TB Day to call for united action against tuberculosis (TB), a disease responsible for more deaths in the last 200 years than any other disease. By prioritizing TB in domestic investments, BRICS countries aim to control and ultimately eliminate TB.

In November 2013, ministers of health from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa issued a statement in Cape Town, South Africa, agreeing to collaborate on improving systems to find and treat patients with TB, improve the supply of TB drugs, and collaborate to develop new drugs and vaccines. BRICS countries have a combined population of almost 3 billion and a combined GDP of $16 trillion.

On World TB Day on March 24, BRICS countries are again coming together under the global theme “Reaching the Missed 3 Million TB Cases.” The World Health Organization estimates that globally, nine million people a year get sick with TB. But every year one-third of them, more than 3 million people, do not receive the TB care they need and are missed by health systems.

These 3 million are among the most vulnerable members of society, including migrants, children, minorities, miners and refugees. Failure to reach these people has devastating health and economic consequences. BRICS countries have pioneered a variety of successful interventions that are driving progress. However, these intervention measures require domestic investment to be scaled up.

BRICS ministers of health are highlighting efforts around World TB Day this year in their countries to advance global progress on TB. They issued the following statements to mark World TB Day:

Brazil

“Brazil has been very successful in bringing its TB burden down, with a significant decrease in incidence and mortality rates since the mid-1990s. The "Parliamentary Alliance against TB" was created by the Brazilian Congress to support TB legislative actions. Brazil has increased funding for TB from $5 million in 2002 to over $70 million in 2013. Today, the national TB program is entirely domestically financed,” said Arthur Chioro, minister of health of Brazil.