Important gains have been made in the global fight against tuberculosis (TB). Each year, fewer people are being diagnosed with the disease. The recent World Health Organisation (WHO) global TB report, which gathers data from 202 countries and territories, shows a 6.3% reduction in the number of new TB infections between 2015 and 2018. This trend of decreasing incidence is also evident in Africa, where it fell from 275 per 100 000 people in 2015 to 231 per 100 000 in 2018.
But this improvement is still not enough to achieve the United Nations’ goal of ending TB by 2030. Worldwide, TB remains the leading cause of death from a single infectious agent. Despite excellent vaccine coverage in endemic areas and the wide availability of effective drug treatment, around 10 million people still fell ill with TB in 2018 and 1.4 million people died from it.
Africa stills bears the brunt of the TB epidemic, accounting for over 24% of all TB cases. Central African Republic, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and South Africa all have a TB incidence of over 500 per 100 000 population – among the highest in the world.
TB is a highly complex global health problem that can only be solved through political will, global collaboration and increased investment in TB research.
