The World Health Organization (WHO) has lauded Kenya for its sustained efforts in combating tuberculosis (TB).
Diallo Abdourahmane, WHO’s country representative in Kenya, acknowledged the significant progress made by the East African nation. Among the seven high-TB-burden countries globally, Kenya achieved a 41 percent reduction in TB incidence and a 60 percent reduction in TB-related deaths in 2023.
“The country remains a pathfinder in the region for scaling up digital tools, rapid molecular diagnostics, and shorter, more effective treatment regimens while embracing innovations,” Abdourahmane said during the commemoration of World Tuberculosis Day in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital.
The UN official emphasized that climate change, which affects food security and contributes to undernutrition, poses an additional threat by increasing vulnerabilities to TB. He urged eastern African countries to intensify their efforts in managing tuberculosis, Xinhua news agency reported.
Mary Muriuki, Principal Secretary at the Ministry of Health, highlighted Kenya’s impressive 89 percent treatment success rate, underscoring the effectiveness of the country’s innovative TB care strategies.
She noted that Kenya has also made significant strides in tackling drug-resistant TB, with 750 patients starting second-line treatment.
“The introduction of shorter, patient-friendly regimens for multidrug-resistant TB and rifampicin-resistant TB has significantly improved patient adherence and health outcomes,” she stated.
Muriuki pointed out that Kenya, like many countries in the WHO African region, continues to experience high TB incidence and mortality. It remains one of the top 20 high-burden TB and TB/HIV countries globally, which collectively account for 80 percent of global TB cases.
In 2023 alone, Kenya recorded an estimated 124,000 TB cases and 15,000 deaths, making tuberculosis the leading cause of death in the country, according to the Ministry of Health.
According to WHO, TB remains a persistent global health challenge and the leading cause of death from infectious diseases, despite being both preventable and curable.
World Tuberculosis Day was observed on March 24 to raise public awareness about the global TB epidemic and efforts to eliminate the disease. In 2018, an estimated 10 million people fell ill with TB, and 1.5 million died from the disease, most of them in low- and middle-income countries.
IANS