First Lady Madam Monica Chakwera says Malawi has made significant progress in eliminating cases of Tuberculosis (TB) in the country over the past years.
Madam Chakwera highlighted this during her dialogue at the ‘End Tuberculosis Innovation Summit’ held in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly with Dr Lucica Ditiu, the Executive Director for Stop TB Partnership in Switzerland.
As the newly appointed Ambassador of the Stop TB Partnership in Malawi and across Africa, the First Lady said incidences of TB in Malawi have seen a significant reduction, dropping from 197 cases per 100,000 people in 2015 to 125 cases per 100,000 people in 2022.
She expressed her deep concern for women and girls residing in rural areas who endure long journeys to access quality treatment. She advocated for door-to-door treatment initiatives to ensure early diagnosis for patients.
The First Lady also emphasized the importance of strategies such as TB mobile diagnostics, community sputum collection points, and door-to-door screening as catalysts to eradicate TB by the year 2030.
Recognising the challenges posed by resource constraints and suboptimal service delivery, Madam Chakwera called for collaborative efforts to mobilise resources and effectively implement strategies to end TB.
She then appealed for increased support from various stakeholders and international institutions, emphasizing the need for their contribution to strengthening programme implementation and service delivery in Malawi and across Africa, ultimately working towards the elimination of TB.
Reported by Lisa Malango, MANA, New York USA.
