Global tuberculosis control is facing major challenges today. In general, much effort is still required to make quality care accessible without barriers of gender, age, type of disease, social setting, and ability to pay. Coinfection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis and HIV (TB/HIV), especially in Africa, and multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) tuberculosis in all regions, make control activities more complex and demanding. Several risk groups need special attention and these are discussed below. These challenges need to be addressed by national tuberculosis programmes with focused attention and tailored approaches.
