The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) today announced three new awards to support the Government of India’s efforts to end tuberculosis (TB) in India.
As part of the Tuberculosis Health Action Learning Initiative (THALI) project, $7.5 million were awarded to the World Health Partners (WHP) to implement activities in Kolkata and $7.5 million were awarded to Karnataka Health Promotion Trust (KHPT) for activities in Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Pune. These awards will assist the Government of India with testing and scaling innovative solutions to prevent, test, and treat TB, especially among underserved urban slum dwellers and other low-income populations.
A $6 million award was signed with REACH (Resource Group for Education and Advocacy for Community Health) to help sustain momentum generated by the Government of India’s Call to Action for a TB-free India campaign to select states and districts in India. The project will work with medical associations and healthcare providers to support adoption and implementation of best practices for , and treatment, and will seek to improve diagnosis and treatment through patient and provider-level behavioral change campaigns.
“We have made great strides toward ending TB in India, but much more work remains. Partnerships, technology, and innovations are essential tools to find low-cost, sustainable solutions to address public health challenges, including TB. These projects will help catalyze solutions and best practices for the successful diagnosis and treatment of TB in hard to reach populations. Together we can achieve a TB-free India!” said U.S. Ambassador to India Richard R. Verma about the new awards.
In the past 18 years, USAID has worked with the Government of India to help diagnose and treat 15 million patients for TB. Despite this success, an estimated 2.2 million cases are reported annually, 220,000 of which prove fatal. This is the highest number of deaths from TB anywhere in the world. The U.S. is actively supporting India in its fight against TB. This shared objective will be achieved by encouraging the adoption and implementation of best practices and innovations for the prevention, detection, and treatment of TB, raising awareness to reduce the social stigma associated with the disease, and empowering communities. USAID is also encouraging the private sector to increase its contribution to the TB-free campaign through social corporate responsibility.
