World Health Organization (WHO) representative in Kenya Rudolff Eggers at the World TB Day event in Nairobi. Photo: Twitter
Kenya joined the rest of the world in marking the World Tuberculosis Day (TB) held annually, every March 24.
2017 is the second year of a two-year “Unite to End TB” campaign for World TB Day.
This year, the World health Organisation, WHO will place a special focus on uniting efforts to “Leave No One Behind”, including actions to address stigma, discrimination, marginalization and overcome barriers to access care.
This is essential in order to reach the target of ending TB by 2030 as part of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the WHO End TB Strategy.
Last year, WHO reported that 10.4 million people fell ill with TB and there were 1.8 million TB deaths in 2015, making it the top infectious killer worldwide.
World TB day, celebrated on 24 March each year, is an opportunity to raise awareness about the burden of tuberculosis (TB) worldwide and the status of TB prevention and care efforts.
It is also an opportunity to mobilize political and social commitment for further progress in efforts to end TB.