Challenge TB Project: USAID To Continue To Support Control Of MDR-TB

Myanmar achieved diagnosis of more than 4,000 additional TB cases from across 37 townships of Sagaing and Bago Regions, and Chin and Kayah States from 2017 to 2019.

This is part of the achievements during five years of cooperation between the Ministry of Health and Sports and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) with 15 million US dollars investment in the Challenge TB project.

Another achievements are uptake of new state-of-the-art drugs, and a new short-course treatment regimen for multidrug resistant (MDR) TB, and adoption of national systems for ensuring patient safety and improved diagnosis and treatment, including external quality assurance for chest x-ray, and active drug safety monitoring and audiometry testing for MDR-TB patients. 

Moreover, the laboratory quality management standards have been increased by more than 50% at two National TB reference laboratories for monitoring drug resistance.

Meanwhile, about 18 million people have greater awareness of MDR-TB through 2018 campaign messages on television, radio and in publications.

USAID Mission Director Ms. McGhie said, “Myanmar’s leadership in ending TB benefits not only people of all ethnic groups across the country, but it also benefits the global community. She also affirmed the commitment of the U.S. Embassy to mitigate sources of fragility and transnational health threats by promoting healthy and resilient populations in Myanmar.

It is learnt that USAID will continue to work with the MOHS through USAID’s participation in the multi-donor Access to Health Fund to expand TB case-finding in hard to reach, conflict-affected townships across the country and to support control of MDR-TB in Yangon Region where half of the cases in the country are detected. These efforts are part of the approximately 32 million US dollars each year the U.S. invests in improving the health of people in Myanmar.