More awareness needed to tackle TB

"Tuberculosis is curable and its eradication is attainable. Drugs are widely available. All we need now is more awareness campaigns with the participation of non-governmental organisations," Soros said during the launching ceremony of a report "TB Policy in Bangladesh - A Civil Society Perspective" at Brac Centre Inn in Mohakhali yesterday.

The Public Health Watch prepared the report in collaboration with the Open Society Institute.

Expressing his concern over the increase of multi-drug-resistant TB in Bangladesh, Soros, the billionaire founder chairman of Open Society Institute, said the challenge ahead needs to be dealt with intense awareness campaigns.

"The poor man's disease, pulmonary tuberculosis, remains largely neglected globally due to low levels of awareness," Soros observed. The disease kills around 70,000 people annually in Bangladesh.

"Our main effort is to help global civil society build their capacity to support the 'Stop TB' programme," Soros said, who is on a special visit at the invitation of Brac.

Brac's director for advocacy and human rights, Afsan Chowdhury, reiterated Soros' message saying, "TB is silently killing people for long but it has also been invisible because of a lack of attention."

Chowdhury also linked the spread of the disease with the battle against poverty, as 300,000 people each year contract the disease in Bangladesh.

Brac founder and chairman Fazle Hasan Abed also spoke.