UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement on Wednesday that the fight against tuberculosis remains "drastically under-funded," with at least 13 billion dollars needed annually by 2022.
The UN chief's statement was ready by UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed at the first-ever UN High-Level Meeting on Tuberculosis.
"We need greater investments in health more broadly and the systems required to end TB," the statement noted.
"Indeed, tuberculosis provides a critical opportunity for us to implement system-wide approaches that build a health infrastructure capable of not only preventing, diagnosing and treating TB, but of promoting and protecting the broader health and well-being of entire communities," Guterres added in the statement.
"Our response to TB can expand access to medicines and drive progress toward Universal Health Coverage for all," said the UN chief.
"The World Health Organization Global Strategy to End TB by 2030 provides a framework for action and, under it, we have seen progress. But that progress is uneven, slow and fragile," he said.
Speaking of the countries with high number of infections, he said two-thirds of all new TB cases occur in just eight countries.
"We still have much work to do to deliver on our promise to truly leave no one behind," he said in the statement.
