Every year, March 24 is observed as World Tuberculosis Day to amplify the urgency of ending tuberculosis (TB), the world’s deadliest infectious disease.
The theme of this year’s campaign is “Yes, We Can End TB – Commit, Invest, Deliver” and the World Health Organisation (WHO) says it is marking the event with renewed calls for action to end TB.
TB remains a significant public health concern in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. According to the latest WHO data, the Region’s 22 countries and territories account for 8.7% of global TB cases. In 2023, there were an estimated 936 000 new TB cases and nearly 86,000 deaths.
“Every 34 seconds someone falls ill with tuberculosis, and every six minutes another life is lost. This is not acceptable. These deaths are avoidable. TB is a curable disease,” says WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Region, Dr Hanan Balkhy.
“In our Region, treatment programmes have a success rate of over 90%, but 3 in 10 cases are undetected and untreated. I urge Member States to take decisive action.”
Despite progress in reducing TB incidence and mortality rates, the Region faces significant challenges in controlling the disease. They include low case detection rates, particularly among vulnerable populations such as refugees and migrants, high treatment default rates which can lead to the development of drug-resistant TB, and limited access to TB services, particularly in rural and hard-to-reach areas.
On World TB Day 2025, WHO is calling on governments, health professionals and communities to:
- Commit to strengthening political leadership to end TB through robust national strategies.
- Invest in increasing domestic funding and international collaboration for TB control programmes.
- Deliver by scaling up WHO-recommended interventions, including early detection, diagnosis, preventive treatment and quality care.
WHO says it is working closely with countries in the Region to strengthen TB control programmes, improve access to TB services, scale up TB detection and treatment and promote TB prevention and control.
WHO recommends that governments invest in strengthening their health systems to improve access to TB services, particularly in rural and hard-to-reach areas, promote TB prevention and control measures, including, infection control and contact tracing, and prioritise scaling up screening, TB detection, treatment, psychosocial and nutritional support with a focus on vulnerable populations.