Day: April 8, 2025

All five Central Asian nations have launched a regional campaign titled “Central Asia Free of Tuberculosis” with the ambitious goal of eliminating tuberculosis (TB), including drug-resistant strains, across the region by 2030, according to Turkmenportal. The initiative is led by the WHO Regional Office for Europe and supported by international health organizations.

Health ministers and senior officials from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan convened in Astana to formally launch the campaign and sign a joint declaration. The agreement outlines commitments to work closely with the World Health Organization (WHO), the Stop TB Partnership, the Global Fund, civil society organizations, and other partners.

Over the past decade, the five countries have made significant strides in combating TB through the introduction of new treatments and improved disease surveillance systems. The new initiative aims to accelerate these efforts toward total eradication.

Key Objectives of the Initiative Include:

• Testing Coverage: Ensure that at least 95% of all new and recurrent TB cases are diagnosed using rapid WHO-recommended diagnostic tools, which are already in place across the region.
• Treatment Expansion: Broaden access to shorter, injection-free treatments for drug-resistant TB, which have demonstrated success rates of over 85%.
• Vaccine Preparedness: Prepare national health systems for the rollout of new TB vaccines once they become available.
• Primary Healthcare Integration: Incorporate TB diagnosis and treatment into each country’s primary healthcare system, with support from WHO’s Primary Health Care Centre in Almaty.

WHO Regional Director Dr. Hans Kluge commended the political leadership demonstrated by the Central Asian governments. He emphasized that the region is now closer than ever to achieving TB elimination but must sustain its commitment through continued investments and stigma-reduction efforts to ensure equitable access to care.

The regional strategy is expected to yield significant results by 2027 and will serve as a framework for monitoring and accelerating progress toward TB elimination in Central Asia.