African region records further decline in Tuberculosis (TB) deaths, cases
Deaths from TB fell by 42% between 2015 and 2023 while cases declined by 24% over the same period, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) Global TB Report 2024.
The reductions were mainly due to increased efforts by countries to reinforce case detection and provision of treatment, thus averting deaths. About 1.9 million cases were detected in 2023 compared with 1.4 million in 2020. Over the same period, treatment coverage rose from 55% to 74% across the region.
This year, World TB Day is being marked under the theme 'Yes! We Can End TB: Commit, Invest, Deliver', which calls for urgent action to turn commitments into tangible impact. It emphasizes the need for strong investment and decisive measures to scale up WHO-recommended interventions for early detection, diagnosis, preventive treatment and high-quality TB care.
The WHO End TB Strategy calls for countries to reduce TB deaths and cases by 75% and 50% respectively by 2025, compared with 2015 levels.
Several African countries have made notable progress. South Africa achieved a 50% reduction in TB incidence between 2015 and 2023, becoming the first country in the region to surpass the 2025 milestone ahead of schedule.
Mozambique, Tanzania, Togo and Zambia have also already met the 2025 goal of a 75% reduction in TB deaths. Other countries, including Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Uganda are close behind, with mortality reductions of 66% or more.
At a subregional level, Eastern and Southern Africa has been the main driver of TB reduction, cutting incidence from 466 to 266 per 100 000 between 2000 and 2023. Progress has been slower in Central and West Africa, where TB incidence and mortality remain a concern.
Despite the progress, several challenges still need to be overcome. Limited access to rapid diagnostics, which currently reach only 54% of TB patients, is one of the most pressing issues. While this marks a significant improvement from just 24% in 2015 – nearly doubling coverage in 10 years – access is insufficient to curb the spread of multidrug-resistant TB strains.
The burden of MDR-TB persists, with more than half of these cases undiagnosed and untreated in 2023.
TB also imposes a severe economic burden. For nearly 68% of TB-affected households in Africa, the cost of seeking treatment is catastrophic. Many families face high out-of-pocket medical expenses, loss of income and inadequate social protection, hindering adherence and full recovery.
Low funding continues to impede TB control efforts at national and regional levels. The African region requires US$ 4.5 billion annually for comprehensive TB services, yet only US$ 0.9 billion is currently available, leaving a US$ 3.6-billion gap. Without urgent investment, life-saving interventions will remain out of reach for many.
WHO continues to support countries to reinforce TB control and contribute to global efforts against the disease. This includes working with countries to adopt rapid diagnosis and updated treatment guides, in line with the UN High-Level Meeting Political Declaration on TB 2023.
To meet the global targets, urgent action is required to close the diagnostic gap, increase funding, and expand access to treatment and prevention.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of WHO Regional Office for Africa.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The National
11 hours ago
- The National
Scientists comb through research for milestone cure for male baldness
Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers of the US, famously joked that two things in life were certain: death and taxes. For many men, however, a third inevitability looms – baldness. In June, Pelage Pharmaceuticals announced 'positive results' from Phase 2a clinical trials of PP405, a drug which aims to combat male-pattern baldness and the thinning of hair in women. The drug is designed to 'reactivate dormant hair follicle stem cells' and could become a 'first-in-class' treatment for men and women, Pelage Pharmaceuticals said in a statement. The treatment could 'go beyond slowing the hair loss process and directly drive hair follicle regeneration,' said Dr Christina Weng, the company's chief medical officer. 'This is a milestone that expands the possibilities of regenerative medicine,' she added. 'As we advance into the next stage of clinical development, our focus remains on delivering a science-driven solution that works for everyone.' Trial results show encouraging signs The phase 2a trials involved 78 participants - men and women – with each person applying the drug or a placebo to their scalp once a day for four weeks. According to the results published by the company, four weeks after the treatment finished, an increase in hair density of 20 per cent or more was seen in almost one third of men who had a greater degree of hair loss. No improvement was observed in the placebo group. Pelage Pharmaceuticals says what is particularly significant is the drug's apparent ability to kick-start hair growth in follicles where no hair was previously present. A new approach to hair regeneration PP405 has been developed by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and targets a series of chemical reactions in cells. Male-pattern baldness is largely caused by genes, although environmental factors also play a role. In some men, it begins in their late teens, with rates increasing with age. A US study found that 16 per cent of men aged 18 to 29 had 'moderate to extensive' hair loss, while among 40-somethings the figure was 53 per cent. Over their lifetime, 80 per cent of men will experience hair loss. Also, about 40 per cent of women will be affected by a thinning of their hair cover. Dr Bharat Pankhania, a senior clinical lecturer at the University of Exeter Medical School, said that with respect to medication, 'some progress' had been made with male-pattern baldness. 'It's inducing the hair follicles to be stimulated to wake up and start doing things they used to do once upon a time,' he said. A true cure, however, remains elusive. Indeed, a 2023 paper in Trends in Biotechnology said that the most effective treatment remained a hair transplant. This paper noted that 'the needs and expectations of patients' were typically not met by current drug treatments, which were often expensive and had limited effectiveness. According to the study, only two drugs approved by the US Food and Drug Administration have been marketed as treatments following four decades of research – and these were branded as being only 'marginally effective'. A lucrative market driving innovation According to figures quoted in the Trends in Biotechnology paper, the global alopecia market was worth $7.6 billion in 2020, and by 2028 is likely to reach $13 billion. Some estimates have put the sector's value as being even higher. 'Because it's a huge market there's a lot of research to find a solution,' Dr Pankhania said. 'I remain optimistic, just as I remain optimistic with the management of [other conditions including] sickle cell anaemia. There's a demand.' While PP405 has sparked many headlines, there are many other strands of research aimed at gaining a better understanding of male-pattern baldness in the hope of finding a cure. Much of this centres on the genetic basis for the condition. Research by the University of Bonn and other institutions in Germany, published in 2023, found a link between rare variants of five genes and male-pattern baldness. The results, the university said when its findings were released, could lead to improved treatments. So for those whose hair is thinning or has almost completely gone, there are causes for optimism – assuming, of course, that they feel that their baldness needs to be cured.
Khaleej Times
21 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
Did US halt Gaza medical visas based on far-right activist Laura Loomer's online posts?
The US State Department announced a suspension of all visitor visas for individuals from Gaza, citing the need for a "full and thorough review" of the recent issuance of a limited number of medical humanitarian visas. The decision, announced on social media platform X, has drawn sharp criticism from human rights advocates and pro-Palestinian organisations, and even among some republicans. US Representative Chip Roy, of Texas, saying he would inquire about the matter and Representative Randy Fine, of Florida, described it as a "national security risk". Check out the US Department's post below: All visitor visas for individuals from Gaza are being stopped while we conduct a full and thorough review of the process and procedures used to issue a small number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas in recent days. — Department of State (@StateDept) August 16, 2025 The Council on American-Islamic Relations condemned the move, saying it was the latest sign of the "intentional cruelty" of the Trump administration. The US issued more than 3,800 B1/B2 visitor visas — used for tourism and medical purposes — to holders of Palestinian Authority travel document so far in 2025, according to an analysis of monthly figures provided on the department's website. That figure includes 640 visas issued in May. These documents are issued to residents of both the West Bank and Gaza, although the breakdown between the two regions was not disclosed. According to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund, the visa freeze will have "devastating and irreversible" consequences. The US-based nonprofit called on the Trump administration to 'reverse this dangerous and inhumane decision". "This policy will have a devastating and irreversible impact on our ability to bring injured and critically ill children from Gaza to the United States for lifesaving medical treatment—a mission that has defined our work for more than 30 years," the organisation said in a statement. Medical evacuations are a lifeline for the children of Gaza who would otherwise face unimaginable suffering or death due to the collapse of medical infrastructure in the war-torn territory. Laura Loomer's online posts The visa halt comes in the wake of social media posts by far-right activist Laura Loomer, who condemned the humanitarian visa programme and urged the Trump administration to end it. Check out some of her social media posts below: Loomer later took credit for influencing the policy change and publicly thanked Secretary of State Marco Rubio for pausing the programme. Republican lawmakers, including Representatives Chip Roy and Randy Fine, expressed national security concerns following Loomer's claims that Palestinian "refugees" had recently entered the US. Check out her post below: Meanwhile, tech entrepreneur Paul Graham, co-founder of Y Combinator, compared Loomer's activism to historical anti-refugee sentiment, writing: 'If Laura Loomer had been around in 1940, she'd have tried to stop Jewish refugees from entering the US." Check out his social media post below: As the visa policy faces ongoing scrutiny, the conversation around who gets access to refuge—and who decides—remains a defining issue in the evolving landscape of US immigration and foreign policy.
The National
a day ago
- The National
US halts visitor visas for Gazans after far-right influencer posts
The US government suspended visitor visas for Gazans late on Saturday after complaints by a far-right influencer that wounded Palestinians were allowed to seek medical treatment in the country. "All visitor visas for individuals from Gaza are being stopped while we conduct a full and thorough review of the process and procedures used to issue a small number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas in recent days," the State Department said on X. The move has sparked condemnation from some Palestinian rights groups. Palestine Children's Relief Fund said the decision "will have a devastating and irreversible impact on our ability to bring injured and critically ill children from Gaza to the United States for life-saving medical treatment". The group urged the US to reverse its decision. "Medical evacuations are a lifeline for the children of Gaza who would otherwise face unimaginable suffering or death due to the collapse of medical infrastructure in Gaza," it said. The shift in policy came after Laura Loomer, a far-right activist who has close ties to President Donald Trump, criticised the American visa programme and called on Washington to "shut this abomination down". She claimed those who have been transported to the US were "pro-HAMAS... affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood," without providing evidence. Ms Loomer's target was the US-based charity HEAL Palestine, which said last week it had helped 11 critically wounded Gazan children, as well as their caregivers and siblings, arrive safely in the US for medical treatment. It was "the largest single medical evacuation of injured children from Gaza to the US," the charity said on its website. Ms Loomer said she had spoken to the staff of Republican Tom Cotton, who chairs the Senate intelligence committee, adding that they were "also looking into how these GAZANS got visas to come into the US". After the decision was announced, the activist, who doesn't hold any political power, took credit for the move and thanked Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Republican Congressman Randy Fine commended Ms Loomer after the visa change was announced, a sign of her influence over some US policy. "Massive credit needs to be given to @LauraLoomer for uncovering this and making me and other officials aware. Well done, Laura," Mr Fine wrote on X.
