Health minister, pate, Ombugadu speak on ways to eradicate tuberculosis in Africa

From Abel Zwànke, Lafia

The Minister of Health, Muhammad Ali Pate, and the Global TB Caucus representatives, David Emmanuel Ombugadu have emphasized on the possible ways of eradicating tuberculosis (TB) in Africa, especially in Nigeria.

They made this known during a dialogue meeting held at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, which was hosted by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) in collaboration with the African Union (AU), Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Health, and the Stop TB Partnership.

In their separate reactions, Ombugadu, representing the Global TB Caucus, emphasized the need for innovative financing and strategic interventions to combat tuberculosis (TB) in Africa.

The Global TB Caucus, an international network of over 2,500 parliamentarians from more than 150 countries, continues to champion the fight against TB worldwide.

Ombugadu’s advocacy explains the need for collective action to address the challenges posed by the disease and ensure sustainable solutions for its eradication.

He noted the vital role of parliamentarians in addressing TB challenges and integrating solutions into national health systems.

The Nations News Nigeriareports that the event brought together key stakeholders, including representatives from the Global Fund, the Mineral Council, the Copenhagen Consensus Centre, and civil society organizations from across Africa.

In his remarks, Ombugadu reflected on his tenure as chair of the TB and HIV Committee in Nigeria’s House of Representatives and his co-chairmanship of the African TB Conference.

He highlighted the importance of parliamentarians taking a lead role in advocacy and resource allocation for TB interventions.

“As parliamentarians, we have a unique responsibility to address TB in our constituencies. During my time in the House, I ensured that members were informed about the TB burden in their constituencies by providing data on affected individuals and available treatment facilities. This helped build understanding and support for TB interventions,” Ombugadu said.

He further emphasized integrating TB initiatives into existing health systems. “I worked to incorporate TB funding into Nigeria’s National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), with budgetary provisions to cover 17,000 lives in my constituency.

Although only 4,000 lives were captured initially due to funding constraints, this demonstrates the potential of including TB treatment in health insurance programs,” he added.

Ombugadu also called for utilizing constituency project funds to address gaps in TB diagnosis and treatment. “I proposed that members of parliament allocate resources for purchasing TB scan machines. Although this initiative was not fully realized during my tenure, I plan to engage with the current House Committee on TB, HIV, and Malaria to revive this effort,” he said.

On his part, the Minister of Health, Muhammad Ali Pate, who was a special guest at the event, commended the dialogue for fostering actionable solutions.

He stressed the need for integrated funding approaches and sector-wide programs to combat TB effectively.

The focus of the discussions was on bridging funding gaps for TB control through innovative solutions such as leveraging the Global Fund, the Pandemic Fund, cross-sectoral financing through Primary Health Care (PHC) and Universal Health Coverage (UHC), and climate-related funding. A priority agenda item was issuing a joint statement on financing the “End of TB in Africa.”

The event concluded with a shared commitment to issuing a joint statement on financing TB eradication efforts across Africa. Stakeholders agreed on the critical role of parliamentarian, private sector collaboration, and innovative financing in achieving the goal of ending TB.