20 March 2013 - Johannesburg - Health Ministers from several African countries and leaders of international agencies are meeting in Swaziland tomorrow where they will launch a fresh offensive against tuberculosis (TB) and TB among people with HIV.
Backed by a package of new investments and supporting initiatives announced in Johannesburg today ahead of the meeting, the leaders will sign the Swaziland Statement. The document commits them to accelerate progress against the two diseases in the next 1000 days and work with Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries to achieve the international targets of cutting deaths from TB and HIV-associated TB by half by 2015, compared to 1990 levels.
The leaders meeting in Swaziland include: Dr Mphu Ramatlapeng, Vice-Chair of the Board of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS; Asad Alam, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Swaziland Country Director for the World Bank; Dr Davide Mosca, Director of the Migration Health Department at the International Organization for Migration; Sarah Dunn, DFID head for Southern Africa; Dr Marc Gastellu-Etchegorry, International Medical Secretary, Medecins Sans Frontières; Dr Owen Kaluwa, WHO Representative to Swaziland; Dr Louise van Deth, Executive Director, Stop AIDS Now! and Dr Lucica Ditiu, Executive Secretary of the Stop TB Partnership.
Read the press release about tomorrow’s meeting.