Pakistan will become tuberculosis-free country by 2030: seminar informed

Pakistan will become tuberculosis-free country by 2030 as the government in collaboration with global partners is making all-out efforts to eradicate the menace from the country. Addressing a seminar here on Monday, Federal Minister for National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination, Saira Afzal Tarar said that tuberculosis (TB) will be eliminated from the country by 2030.
The seminar was organized by the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination in collaboration with the World Health Organization and the National TB Control Program in connection with World Tuberculosis Day. Despite significant progress over the last decades regarding eradication of TB, still it continues to be a top infectious killer worldwide, she said, adding the disease is claiming over 4,500 lives a day. The emergence of multi-drug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) poses a major health security threat and can risk gains made in the fight against TB.
The minister said that the government is adopting all measures to inculcate awareness among the people about social, economic and health related consequences of this fatal disease. Furthermore, diagnosis centers have been established in districts of Balochistan and awareness campaigns will be launched on the emergency basis in schools and colleges regarding the disease. The government has made a viable plan to educate doctors and paramedical staff about the disease so that they can take timely steps in diagnosing TB.
The minister said that one of the causes in manifold increase in various diseases in Pakistan is the increase in population of the country. She said that the government has established 120 centres for 'Multi-Drugs Resistant TB' treatment, and by 2016 nearly 366,000 patients had been treated in these centers. Saira said that the government is committed to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and thanked the international partners for helping in eradication of the disease from the country.
Saira said that the government has allocated $500 million to eradicate the disease under a three-year plan. She said that the provincial governments will contribute 70 percent to the plan while the Global Fund will provide an amount of $150 million. She said that the government has also made legislation for collecting the data of TB patients being treated at various government and private hospitals.
Speaking on the occasion, Program Manager National TB Program Dr Nasir Mahmood said that Pakistan is the 5th amongst 30 high-TB countries, while 6th amongst the drug-resistant TB countries in the world. Tuberculosis is considered as one of the top 10 causes of deaths worldwide. In 2016, there were around 10.4 million new cases reported globally with a mortality of 1.7 million. In Pakistan, during the year 2016, it was estimated that 518,000 patients were diagnosed with TB with an incidence of 268/100,000 population.
Additionally, Stop TB Pakistan (National Partnership) has initiated a five-year strategic plan to control TB in Balochistan. This plan has recommendations as per the guidelines by the World Health Organization and is in line with the requirements of the province for the timely end of TB.