CNS: March 2019

Unfortunately, UN agencies have never put TB as their top priority, said Dr. Mario Raviglione

Dr Mario Raviglione

[First published in Asian Tribune, Sri Lanka/Thailand on March 30, 2019]
“There is no single country in the world which has ever eliminated tuberculosis (TB)- the number one infectious disease killer in the world. Asia and Africa respectively account for 60% and 25% of the global TB cases. Every year 10 million patients with TB are reported in the world and 1.6 million die of it, which amounts to nearly 4000 deaths per day. So we need to move fast to achieve elimination targets set by the World Health Assembly as part of the End TB Strategy”, stated Dr. Mario Raviglione, Director, Global Health Centre, University of Milan, and former Director, Global TB Program of the WHO, while speaking at a webinar organized by Citizen News Service (CNS) in the lead up to World TB Day 2019.

India Health Fund provides platform for domestic financing and innovation to combat TB and malaria

Shobha Shukla and Bobby Ramakant
(First published in Aidspan on March 19, 2019)

The collaborative initiative, seeded by Tata Trusts, comes to the co-financing table

With an acute need to increase health budgets, innovative financing, especially mobilized within nations, is increasingly in the spotlight. At the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria’s 39th Board Meeting in May last year, the Fund stated that given the changing financing landscape and existing financial and programmatic gaps, the Fund should leverage opportunities to use innovative finance to increase funding flows for itself and other actors, as well as to increase the efficiency of its investments and national programs.

This special Podcast on World TB Day 2019 features conversation with following experts: Dr Tereza Kasaeva, Director, WHO Global TB Programme; Dr Mario Raviglione, Director, Global Health Centre, University of Milan; and former Director, Global TB Programme of the WHO; Dr Virendra Singh Salhotra, Additional Deputy Director General, Central TB Division, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India; Dr Kuldeep Singh Sachdeva, head of India's national TB programme (Deputy Director General, Central TB Division, Ministry of Health and Family
Welfare, Government of India); and Prabha Mahesh, TB advocate and Operations Manager, Alert India.

It's Time to bend the curve sharply to #endTB

First published in The Bangkok Post (editorial page), Thailand

[हिंदी] Although governments of 193 countries had promised way back in 2015 to end tuberculosis (TB) by 2030, the global annual rate of TB decline since then has been much less than what is required.

Watch webinar recording | Listen to podcast

It's time to end latent TB too!

This Podcast features conversation on ending latent tuberculosis (TB) infection, with experts like, Dr Shibu Balakrishnan, TB expert from RNTCP Kerala, India; Dr Nguyen Viet Nhung, head of Vietnam's national TB programme; Dr Shibu Vijayan, acting Global TB Technical Director at PATH; Dr Rajesh Kumar Sood, District TB Officer, Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, India; Dr Erlina Burhan, Head of TB DOTS and MDR-TB Persahabatan Hospital, Indonesia and member, Board of Directors, International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union); and (Moderator) Shobha Shukla, Executive Director and Managing Editor, CNS.

Thanks

CNS eLearning Programme Team
Email: webinar@citizen-news.org
Website: www.citizen-news.org

[CNS Live eConversation] It's TIME to end latent TB too!

[Watch video recording] [Listen or download podcast] Between a quarter and a third of the world’s population are estimated to be infected with latent tuberculosis (TB). According to the World Health Organization (WHO), on average, 5-10% of those who are infected with latent TB, will develop active TB disease over their lifetime. Because “reactivated” TB is contagious, eradicating latent infection is a cornerstone of global TB control and achieving a better understanding of latent infection is deemed a research priority (read more).

With more mobile connections (8.4 billion) than human population, it is indeed wise to optimally tap the potential of information and communication technologies to bolster public health campaigns. However, electronic health (eHealth) and mobile health (mHealth) technologies are yet to be fully utilized in global health.

Women speak: To be a woman & to be in India

Shobha Shukla, CNS (Citizen News Service)

Is the situation dismal? In a survey of experts done in 2018, India ranks as the world’s most dangerous country for women. It had ranked 4th in the same survey done 7 years ago. The Global Gender Gap Index 2017 by the World Economic Forum placed India at 108 position out of 144 countries benchmarked on the basis of gender parity in the fields of economic participation, education, health and political empowerment. India ranked 131 out of 153 countries in the global Women, Peace, and Security Index 2017-18, that is based upon 11 indicators incorporating inclusion, justice, and security. Despite women accounting for 49% of India’s population, only 12% of the seats in the national legislature are held by them. The female labour force participation rate in India fell from 37% in 2006 to 27% in 2017, as per World Bank report, ranking India at 163 out of 181 countries.

This Podcast features coversation with Charles Gore, Executive Director of the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) with Shobha Shukla, CNS Managing Editor. Key highlight is where Charles Gore shares key learning of his engagement around hepatitis (both hepatitis C and hepatitis B related) spanning so many years. He also shares insights on range of issues such as access to medicines, voluntary licensing, and on his role at Medicines Patent Pool now, and way forward.

Thanks

CNS eLearning Programme Team
Email: webinar@citizen-news.org
Website: www.citizen-news.org

CNS Live eConversation with Charles Gore of Medicines Patent Pool

International Women's Day 2019 unites different medical specialities and gender advocates

[हिंदी] Over 100 years ago, Socialist Party began mass mobilization around the first-ever International Women's Day to demand women's equality and voting rights in the United States of America (USA). This year's campaign theme around International Women's Day is #BalanceForBetter.

[Watch the recording] [Listen to podcast] CNS Managing Editor and Executive Director Shobha Shukla, will be in conversation in CNS LIVE with Charles Gore, Executive Director of the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP). Be welcome to join us on Tuesday, 5th March 2019, at 1pm Geneva time (5:30pm India/ 7pm Thailand).