The Development of the Global Plan to Stop TB
The Stop TB Partnership secretariat coordinated the development of the Second Global Plan to Stop TB (2006-2015), under the guidance of the Steering Committee. The Plan represents a roadmap for TB control over the next decade (2006-2015), in working towards the goal to eliminate TB as a global public health problem by 2050. Work started in May 2004 with building consensus among Stop TB partners on the outline of the Plan. The Plan sets out the actions needed to reach the 2015 global targets for TB control, which are part of the United Nations (UN) Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The global target is to halve TB prevalence and deaths by 2015 in comparison with 1990.
The development of a strategic plan (2006-2015) by each Working Group (WG) was crucial to the successful development and subsequent implementation of the Global Plan. The WGs have much to gain from the successful development of a global plan with wide support. At its meeting in Beijing in October 2004, the Coordinating Board requested each WG to develop its own strategic plan (2006-2015) in contribution to the overall Global Plan. The WG chairpersons and secretaries (see table below) met in Beijing on 16 October 2004 straight after the Coordinating Board meeting to discuss the planning process for the WGs' contributions to the Global Plan. For each WG this involved planning the activities (ultimately with timelines and milestones) necessary to contribute to achieving the 2015 global TB control targets, with the accompanying costs.
The initial step in the planning process was to construct possible scenarios which consider how the activities of the seven WGs could, separately and together, contribute to reaching the targets in 2015. It was necessary to consider how the regions individually and the world overall could reach the 2015 global TB control targets. This work on epidemiological and costing projections provided each WG with the basis for developing its strategic workplan in contribution to achieving the 2015 global targets. This planning process required close interaction between the representatives of the seven WGs and the team assessing the epidemiological impact of the currently available and new tools.
At a planning workshop in Montreux, Switzerland (28 February to 4 March 2005), WG focal points (identified by each WG chairpersons and secretary) and the team assessing epidemiological impact presented and refined scenarios representing how the activities of each WG could contribute to global TB control. Developing the scenarios built on work already done by some WGs in modelling the expected impact of their activities.
The Steering Committee met in April 2005 to review progress in developing the WGs' strategic plans in contribution to the Global Plan. Successful development and implementation of the WG strategic plans depended on the involvement of a wide range of members of each WG.
At the end of September 2005 the first complete draft of the Global Plan was posted on the Stop TB Partnership website for several weeks' open review. Subsequent finalization of the Plan reflected the comments arising from this consultation period, and from discussions following presentation of the draft Plan at the Working Group meetings in Versailles and Paris in October 2005. The Coordinating Board endorsed the final Global Plan in November 2005, for launch in January 2006.
Chairpersons and secretaries of the Working Groups
DOTS Expansion: Secretary: Léopold Blanc blancl@who.ch | Chairperson: Karam Shah tbc@comsats.net.pak
TB/HIV: Secretary: Paul Nunn: nunnp@who.ch | Chairperson: Gijs Elzinga gijs.elzinga@rivm.nl
DOTS-Plus: Secretary: Kitty Lambregts lambregtsk@who.ch | Chairperson: Kai Vink kaivink@kodu.ee
New drugs: Secretary: Barbara Laughon blaughon@niaid.nih.gov | Chairperson: Maria Freire maria.freire@tballiance.org
New diagnostics: Secretary: Jane Cunningham cunninghamj@who.ch | Chairperson: Giorgio Roscigno Giorgio.roscigno@finddiagnostics.org
New vaccines Secretary: Uli Fruth fruthu@who.ch | Chairperson: Douglas Youngd.young@imperial.ac.uk
Advocacy and Communication Secretary: Carole Francis francisc@who.ch | Chairperson: Joanne Carter carter@gate.results.org
