RI receives $18m for TB

Erwida Maulia ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Nusa Dua,Bali   |  Tue, 08/11/2009 2:42 PM  |  National

Indonesia received US$18 million to fund programs promoting its fight against tuberculosis as the Health Ministry's director general for disease control and environmental recovery, Tjandra Yoga Aditama, signed an agreement with the executive director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Michel Kazatchkine.

This occurred on the sidelines of the 9th International Conference on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP) in Bali International Convention Center, Nusa Dua.

Tjandra said the aid from the Global Fund would be channeled through the ministry and the University of Indonesia (UI) School of Public Health.

While the ministry will utilize the funds to increase its supply of anti- TB drugs and improve its diagnoses, UI will use its share for research activities and information dissemination among medical workers.

Indonesia ranks third in terms of the number of TB infections across the globe, with 244 cases per 100,000 people.

The estimated prevalence of HIV cases among confirmed TB patients stands at 3 percent nationwide, while it is 2.2 percent among multi-drug resistant TB sufferers.
 
 

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