The Ministry of National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination, in collaboration with the Dopasi Foundation and the Health Services Academy is organizing an End-TB Summit on 18th January 2022 at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, Islamabad. This summit is in continuation of the TB summit held on the 3rd April 2019 at the Presidency presided by the President of Pakistan Dr Arif Alvi during which he pledged to make Pakistan TB Free by 2030. The 2nd End- TB Summit will track the progress made during the past two year in this regard.
Over 600,000 new TB cases including 27,000 drug-resistant TB cases emerge every year and are added to the prevalent pool of cases, out of which nearly a third of the cases are missed
while the rest are treated and cured. Over 44,000 persons die due to Tuberculosis every year in Pakistan, which is ranked fifth globally among the TB high-burden countries and accounts
for 60% of the TB burden of WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Region comprising of 22 countries.
The summit will also celebrate the Kochon Prize 2021 awarded to Pakistan for its tireless efforts in eliminating TB in the country. This international prize is endowed by the Kochon
Foundation, Republic of Korea, and is awarded annually by the Stop TB Partnership Geneva to individuals and/or organizations that have made a significant contribution to combating
TB. During 2021, the Dopasi Foundation Pakistan was the only recipient of this prize after competing with thousands of similar organizations worldwide.
Another important objective of the summit is to launch an awareness and advocacy campaign for TB control, elimination, and prevention through the involvement of government, civil
society, celebrities, media, and parliamentarians and delineate the way forward. It will serve to ensure that the TB and COVID-19 affected communities and civil society are working in
tandem with sensitized, strengthened, and competent legal and mental health professional societies, advocating for the provision of all dimensions of TB care and support as a matter of
right, and for recovery efforts to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the TB response and meet our national goals and international obligations in this regard.
The summit is being hosted by Dr Nausheen Hamid, the Parliamentary Secretary for National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination, who is also heading the End-TB Parliamentary
Caucus. The caucus has recently joined hands with the SDGs Task Force headed by MNA Mr. Riaz Fatyana for collective efforts towards better outcomes.
Federal and provincial ministers, parliamentarians, diplomats, policymakers, senior health professionals, health development partners and representatives of civil society are expected to grace the Summit by their presence virtually or physically.
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