Namibia: TB infection spiraling out of control
The country still faces one of the most severe TB epidemics in the world
Dwindling financial support for Tuberculosis (TB) programmes and activities have placed a huge burden on Central Government, placing Namibia at the top of the list of countries severely hit by the pandemic.
Although in a decreasing trend, the country still faces one of the most severe TB epidemics in the world, ranking No.1 in 2005 and Number 3 in the 2006 Global TB report, after Swaziland and Botswana. Financial support from the Global Fund to fight HIV-AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria – which initially stood at an estimated N$989 million in total to Namibia, has since been reduced significantly.
The Global Fund recently withdrew all its financial support to Lironga Eparu, a Namibian HIV/AIDS body, leaving about 45 000 people living with HIVAIDS out in the cold. The burden of TB is compounded by a severe dual TB/ HIV epidemic, with 22% HIV prevalence in pregnant women (2002) and 45% HIV prevalence in TB patients (1998).
As a result, TB is the main cause of morbidity and mortality in people with HIV infection and HIV/AIDS is the most common complicating disease in people with active TB disease. The Global Report on TB holds firm that approximately 60% of the reported TB patients are HIV-positive and a low treatment success of 70% was reported in the 2004 cohort of smear-positive patients.
The US-based President Emergency Plan for Aids Relief, had also recently cut its contribution to Namibia by a massive N$20 million, reasoning that Namibia has made progress in HIV and Aids mitigation, and was thus not in the red any longer.
The Erongo Region, along with the Khomas and Okavango regions - in that order – contain the highest TB cases in the country, with Walvis Bay hosting the highest number of TB patients country-wide. Last year alone, 1174 new cases of TB were reported in the Erongo Region.
The Ministers of Health and Social Services, Dr Richard Kamwi, sounded warning bells at Walvis Bay yesterday, explaining that the fight against TB requires a similar multi-sectoral approach that is employed in programmes targeting HIV/Aids prevention and treatment.
“We are sitting on a time-bomb here and something needs to be done urgently to bring the situation under control,” Kamwi said, calling on role players in the private sector to complement Government’s efforts in addressing challenges posed by the pandemic. Relief Namibia in the fight against the TB pandemic could, however, come in the form of the successes of the Ministry of Health and Social Services’ Direct Observed Treatment Strategy (DOTS), which has recorded tremendous progress since its introduction in 1996. Under DOTS, a record 92% of TB patients completed their treatment.
Kamwi is optimistic that with more financial support, TB could be successfully tackled in the same fashion as HIV/Aids.
“We are defeating HIV/Aids as we are far ahead of Government’s set targets and are today one of Africa’s leading top three countries with an effective treatment programme. “Let us do the same for TB, before it is too late,” he said.
Namibian SUN
http://sun.com.na/content/national-news/tb-infection-spiraling-out-control
