Dear colleagues and friends,
Good afternoon, and a warm welcome to this Town Hall, co-led by the WHO Civil Society Task Force on TB.
As you know, the COVID-19 pandemic has reversed years of progress against TB, while conflicts around the world have badly disrupted essential health services, including for TB.
For the first time in over a decade, WHO has reported an increase in TB deaths.
This makes meaningful engagement with affected communities and civil society more important than ever.
This is why we are establishing the WHO Civil Society Commission. Engaged communities are a critical part of every country’s journey towards universal health coverage.
TB is an ancient disease that persists as the result of poverty and unhealthy living conditions. It is also a disease that carries a heavy burden of stigma.
This makes the partnership between affected communities and health systems all the more important.
That’s why, in 2018, we established the WHO Civil Society Task Force on TB, to help bring the voices of affected communities and civil society to the work of WHO.
Today we’ll discuss the priorities and work of the Task Force, as we look towards the UN High Level Meeting on TB in 2023.
We also want to hear your views about critical areas where WHO needs to focus its attention, in our engagement with civil society and affected communities.
We want to make sure we are doing everything we can to put affected communities at the centre of our work.
Thank you all once again for your commitment to the fight against TB.
We face a formidable challenge, but with close partnership between communities, governments and WHO, I believe we can realise the dream to end TB.