News from the Stop TB Partnership Secretariat
Special Announcements
World TB Day - Call for information!
Please send us information on your planned activities for WTBD. We will be posting this information on the World TB Day web site making your ideas and activities available to Stop TB partners around the globe. Email us at stoptbadvocacy@who.int.
New Publications:
- The interim policy on collaborative TB/HIV activities released
- Independent External Evaluation of the
Global Stop TB Partnership
[Report 530KB .pdf - Annex 550KB .pdf]
Advocacy and Communications
Advocacy campaign for TB/HIV
The Stop TB Partnership is closely collaborating with UNAIDS to promote implementation of new WHO policy guidelines for a collaborative approach to fight TB/HIV co-infection (see the guidelines, above). During the first half of 2004, Stop TB and UNAIDS will roll out the following advocacy activities:
- January / Media launch of WHO policy guidelines
- March / Media conference and advocacy workshop on TB/HIV at Stop TB Partners' Forum
- April / Media and social mobilization activities around national TB/HIV conference in Ukraine
- April-May / Broadcast of new documentary film on TB and TB/HIV by BBC World Television (see below) add in link to BBC section below
- July / Production and distribution of new information pack on TB/HIV
- July / Media conference and advocacy workshop on TB/HIV at International AIDS Conference in Bangkok
A. R. Rahman becomes Stop TB Global Ambassador
India 's musical superstar and composer of the hit musical "Bombay Dreams", Mr. A.R. Rahman, has agreed to become the first Global Ambassador for the Stop TB Partnership. His appointment will be highlighted with a day-long series of public events in London on 10 March 2004, followed by his appearance at the Stop TB Partners' Forum on 24 March 2004 to mark World TB Day.
COMBI campaign gets underway in Kerala
A state-wide Communications for Behavioural Change (COMBI) campaign, developed by the Stop TB Partnership Secretariat and Social Mobilization and Training (SMT) team of WHO, was launched in January in Kerala, India. The campaign will mobilize millions of school children and thousands of health workers, supported with media spots, around the slogan "Coughing, coughing, coughing... take the free TB sputum test," with the aim of sharply increasing the detection rate for infectious TB cases. Kerala signed on to the campaign because while it has achieved 100% DOTS coverage, case detection has been lagging behind the national average. More information on the campaign will be provided in future Communiqués as it develops. A similar but nationwide COMBI campaign is due for launch in February in Kenya.
Media events
- MDR-TB Report / WHO and the Partnership will organize media events in New York City, London and Berlin to launch the 3rd global report on anti-TB drugs resistance. The launch is scheduled for 17 March.
- WHO Global TB Control Report / The annual report will be launched on 24 March in conjunction with World TB Day and inauguration of the 2nd Stop TB Partners' Forum in New Delhi.
- BBC Documentary / The Stop TB Partnership and WHO Stop TB Department are supporting the production of a 25-minute documentary film for broadcast by BBC World Television. The film will have two parts, one to be filmed in India that will highlight the success of DOTS expansion, and another in Malawi focusing on TB/HIV and the dire threat it poses to TB control programmes in Africa. The film is scheduled for broadcast 4-5 times during the same week in late April or early May to a global BBC audience of 240 million people across five continents.
TB-Related News and Journal Items Weekly Update
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides the TB-Related News and Journal Items Weekly Update as a public service only. (Providing synopses of key scientific articles and lay media reports on TB does not constitute CDC endorsement.) The Update may also include information from CDC and other government agencies, such as background on articles in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), fact sheets, and press releases.
For more information visit: http://www.cdcnpin.org/scripts/subscribe.asp#journal
To subscribe or change subscriptions visit: http://lists.cdcnpin.org/mailman/listinfo/tb-update
The Stop TB Working Groups
Global Alliance for TB Drug Development
Compound Pipeline Update
The TB Alliance has recently expanded and advanced its portfolio of promising anti-TB candidates. Consisting of 10 compounds, with the lead compound on track to enter clinical trials in 2005, the TB Alliance's portfolio holds considerable promise for delivering a new therapy that will significantly improve and shorten TB treatment.
To read more about the TB Alliance portfolio updates, visit: http://www.tballiance.org/7_1_1GenericNewsArticles.asp?itemId=384
DOTS Expansion
Intensified Support and Action Countries (ISAC) Initiative
ISAC is a special emergency initiative to accelerate DOTS expansion and reach the 2005 global TB targets and the 2015 Millennium Development Goals. It will focus on international assistance and support efforts on selected countries through the DOTS Expansion Working Group in order to do all that is possible to reach the 2005 and 2015 targets. This special effort is in addition to the regular support to all 22 high TB burden countries and other countries in need. Countries will be selected based on a range of criteria. The ISAC interventions will consist of intensified technical assistance, accelerated partnership building, in-country advocacy and social mobilization and high-level political and advocacy missions. The initiative was presented and discussed during the joint meeting with regional advisers and key partners, which took place from 12 to 15 January 2004 in Geneva, Switzerland. Seven countries were identified for the first year of support. Country plans are currently being developed.
2nd ad hoc Committee on the TB epidemic
The 2nd ad hoc Committee on the TB epidemic met in September 2003 in Montreux, Switzerland, to make recommendations on the mid-term strategic direction for global TB control. The Committee's report and the accompanying background document are available on the Stop TB website (http://www.who.int/gtb/meetings/montreux_sep03/index.htm). The Stop TB Partners' Forum in New Delhi from 24-26 March 2004 will provide an opportunity for Stop TB partners to discuss how they can pursue the implementation of these recommendations.
Linking the Public-Private Sectors
The second meeting of the Subgroup on Public-Private Mix for DOTS Expansion (PPM DOTS) will be held from 3-5 February 2004 at the WHO's South East Asia Regional Office in New Delhi.The meeting will review global progress, identify enablers to scale-up PPM DOTS in regions and countries and assess the impact of PPM on case detection so far. Delegates also hope to examine strategies on how to approach hospitals to support DOTS expansion, assess training needs for PPM and identify key areas of work including equity in access to care.
TB/HIV
Interim Policy on collaborative TB/HIV activities released:
The Interim Policy, which gives guidance on what should be done in countries and clearly defines the activities that need to be carried out to address the intersecting epidemics of TB and HIV, has been released. The release coincides with the Fourth round call of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria to assist and promote the development of TB/HIV proposals. The deadline for submission of proposals is 5 April 2004. The interim policy recommends collaborative TB/HIV activities with the following objectives: to establish the mechanism between TB and HIV/AIDS programmes, to decrease the burden of TB in people living with HIV/AIDS and to decrease the burden of HIV in TB patients. The full document can be obtained from <http://www.who.int/gtb/publications/tb_hiv/2004_330/pdf/interim_policy.pdf>. The recommendations of the Interim Policy in French and English are also available in the Weekly Epidemiological Record (2004;79:1-12) or(<http://www.who.int/wer/2004/en/wer7901.pdf>)
The 3x 5 target and TB control programmes in Africa
A meeting was held in Pretoria, South Africa from 10-14 November 2003 where 25 National TB Control Programme Managers from the Africa Region of WHO participated and reiterated their support to the 3 x 5 target of placing 3 million people on antiretroviral drugs by 2005. Presentations at the meeting indicated that many countries are already moving ahead in implementing collaborative TB/HIV activities. Cote d' Ivore is offering HIV testing to TB patients and cotrimoxazole preventive therapy, and roll out of TB/HIV activities is proceeding in all provinces of South Africa. Kenya, Malawi and Senegal have all begun delivering ART.
The Core Group of the TB/HIV Working Group will hold its 5th meeting in WHO HQ in Geneva on 2-3 February.
The 21-member Groupwill meet to discuss progress made since the last meeting in September 2003, plans for 2004, and ways to speed up implementation of TB/HIV collaborative activities. It will also select a Chairperson for the following three years and plan for the next Working Group meeting to be held towards the end of 2004."
Global Drug Facility (GDF)
Direct Procurement Service
The Direct Procurement Service continues to be another useful tool in the fight against TB. Since its inception in 2002, 11 countries have taken advantage of the GDF Direct Procurement Service, placing orders for more than 471,000 patients at an estimated value of more than $6 million US dollars. In November 2003, the Philippines set a precedent with its $4.4 million US dollar order, with funding from the World Bank.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
58th National Conference to TB & Chest Diseases
Organised by Maharashtra State Anti-TB Association. Any organisation wishing to join, please contact: lionsatish@hotmail.com
Mumbai, India, 2-4 January 2004
Forum of the United Nations, the African Union and the Pan-African Youth Conference on HIV/AIDS in Africa. / Draft Programme
Livingstone, Zambia, 14-18 February 2004 (postponed from November 2003)
For more events visit: /events/archive.asp
Relevant Websites
- 2nd Partners' Forum Website
www.stoptb.org/events/partners_forum/2004/ - Stop TB Website
www.stoptb.org - Global Drug Facility for TB
www.stoptb.org/gdf/ - WHO TB Website
www.who.int/gtb/
The Stop TB Partnership is a global movement with more than 200 member organizations(including the World Health Organization) that are engaged in TB control efforts around the world. The Stop TB Partnership Secretariat is hosted by WHO in Geneva and coordinates the activities of the Partnership.
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