TB Europe Coalition involved in developing new TB Action Plan for Europe 2016-2020
On 3rd October 2014, the TB Europe Coalition was invited by WHO Europe to represent civil society working on tuberculosis across the European region at the first meeting of the Advisory Committee for the development of the “Tuberculosis Action Plan for the WHO European Region, 2016-2020”.
“The Consolidated Action Plan to Prevent and Combat Multidrug and Extensively Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis in the WHO European Region, 2011-2015” commonly known as MAP, was endorsed by the 61st Session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe in Baku, Azerbaijan, on 15 September 2011. The Plan considers a number of activities in seven areas of intervention to be undertaken by Member States, with assistance of the WHO Regional Office and Partners. After four years of implementation, significant progresses can be reported in the prevention and control of multidrug resistant (MDR) and extensively drug resistant (XDR) tuberculosis (TB) in the Region, but challenges exists particularly in achieving treatment success.
Coming closer to its last year of implementation and with endorsement of the Post 2015 Global TB Strategy by the 67th World Health Assembly, it was time to re-think how Member States, WHO and partners should move forward together in preventing and controlling TB and M/XDR-TB in the WHO European Region.
A new Action Plan covering 2016-2020 will be prepared and endorsed at the WHO Regional Committee meeting in September 2015. Civil society (MSF, Partners in Health, TB Europe Coalition and STOP TB Tajikistan) and a patient representative from Tajikistan are part of this advisory committee, which will help draft the new Action Plan. The TB Europe Coalition will work effortlessly in making sure that inputs from civil society organisations and affected communities across the region will be collected and prominently featured in the new plan.
Source: TB Europe Coalition
