Tuberculosis remains a public health concern strongly influenced by social, economic and environmental determinants that require concerted efforts at national level.
By Hicham Alaoui
In that regard, the Moroccan Ministry of Health is launching an extension of the kingdom’s national strategic plan for the prevention and control of tuberculosis for 2021-2023.
This is with a view to “reducing the number of deaths linked to tuberculosis by 60 percent in 2023, compared to 2015, the Ministry of Health said in a statement on Wednesday, as the kingdom marked World Tuberculosis Day.
In perfect line with the WHO global strategy “to end tuberculosis,” this strategic plan constitutes the appropriate framework for intensifying the fight against tuberculosis, based on a multi-sectoral approach, anchored on human development and taking into account human rights values and principles, the ministry added.
The year 2020 witnessed an exceptional convergence of public policies as part of the response to the Covid-19 pandemic; this momentum is a lever to strengthen national efforts to achieve the sustainable development goals, including that of “ending tuberculosis by 2030.”
In Morocco and, despite the impact of this pandemic on the health system, a total of 29,018 cases of tuberculosis were reported and treated in 2020, the statement said.
Important innovative measures have been taken to maintain the performance of essential TB services at expected levels, with a view to ensuring continuity of services and availability of anti-TB drugs.
The national anti-TB program has occupied, for more than 30 years, a priority place in the kingdom’s health policy, with the increasing allocation of resources, the mobilization of national and international partners and especially the full commitment of the entire health professionals.
Significant advances were made in terms of improvement in the rates of coverage by screening, diagnostic and treatment services, with therapeutic success maintained at more than 85 percent since 1995, resulting in the reduction in the burden of morbidity and mortality of the disease, it said.
Placed this year under the theme “time is running out,” World Tuberculosis Day reiterates the call for stronger commitment from all partners, larger resources and more effective action against this global scourge.
According to WHO estimates, tuberculosis affected nearly ten million people worldwide in 2019 and caused more than 1.4 million deaths, which makes it one of the most deadly infectious diseases globally.
In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic represented a real threat to the fight against tuberculosis on a global scale.
The World Health Organization modeling suggests that there could be hundreds of thousands more deaths from tuberculosis between 2021 and 2025, due to the decline in detection performance and difficulties in accessing anti-TB treatment.
HA/fss/as/APA