TB deaths drop by 42% in Africa, but key goals remain unmet-WHO

Tuberculosis (TB) deaths in Africa have declined more than in any other region since 2015, the World Health Organization (WHO) has reported.

However, despite this progress, key targets to reduce the disease burden remain out of reach.

According to WHO’s Global TB Report 2024, TB-related deaths in Africa fell by 42 percent between 2015 and 2023, while cases decreased by 24 percent.

This improvement is attributed to better case detection and treatment coverage, with 1.9 million cases identified in 2023 compared to 1.4 million in 2020.

Over the same period, treatment coverage increased from 55 percent to 74 percent.

South Africa has surpassed its 2025 milestone ahead of schedule, achieving a 50 percent reduction in TB incidence.

Other countries, including Mozambique, Tanzania, Togo, and Zambia, have reached the goal of a 75 percent reduction in TB deaths.

Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and Uganda are also making notable progress, with mortality rates dropping by at least 66 percent.

Eastern and Southern Africa have led in reducing TB cases, cutting incidence from 466 per 100,000 people in 2000 to 266 per 100,000 in 2023.

However, progress has been slower in Central and West Africa, where TB remains a serious public health concern.

The WHO’s End TB Strategy aims for a 75 percent reduction in TB deaths and a 50 percent decline in cases by 2025, using 2015 as the baseline.

This year’s World TB Day theme, “Yes! We Can End TB: Commit, Invest, Deliver,” calls for stronger commitments and financial backing for TB control programs.

Despite the progress, significant challenges remain. Access to rapid diagnostics has improved from 24 percent in 2015 to 54 percent in 2023, but it is still inadequate to curb the spread of multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB).

More than half of MDR-TB cases go undetected and untreated, posing a major threat to control efforts.

Financial hardships also make it difficult for patients to stay on treatment.

WHO estimates that 68 percent of households affected by TB in Africa face catastrophic healthcare costs, including medical expenses and lost income.

Funding shortages further complicate efforts to tackle the disease.

The region needs $4.5 billion (Sh582.7 billion) annually to provide full TB services, but only $0.9 billion (Sh116.5 billion) is available, leaving a gap of $3.6 billion (Sh466.2 billion).

Without urgent investment, many people will be unable to access life-saving treatments.

WHO is supporting African countries in adopting rapid diagnostic tools and updated treatment guidelines in line with the UN High-Level Meeting Political Declaration on TB 2023.

The organization is calling for immediate action to close the diagnostic gap, increase funding, and improve access to treatment and prevention to meet global TB reduction targets.

TB infection exists in two forms: latent TB infection (LTBI) and TB disease.

People with latent TB infection carry the bacteria but do not exhibit symptoms and cannot spread the disease. However, without treatment, they may develop active TB disease.