Reducing Uzbekistan’s Tuberculosis (TB) Burden
Highlights
- Uzbekistan ranks in the top 30 countries with cases of multidrug-resistant TB (DR-TB).
- Building capacity to provide equitable access to affordable TB prevention, care, and treatment services.
- Strengthening TB health systems to achieve national and global TB targets.
Uzbekistan has made great strides in tuberculosis (TB) control. However, the TB burden remains high, and Uzbekistan is in the top 30 countries with cases of multidrug-resistant TB. Across USAID’s reach, cure, prevent, innovate, and sustain strategic objectives, challenges and bottlenecks persist that impede the country from reaching its TB targets. The challenges that USAID TB Free Uzbekistan (TB Free UZ) seeks to target are building capacity, strengthening data systems, and operationalizing guidelines and policies across Uzbekistan.
The USAID TB Free Uz activity is an $18 million five-year activity that aims to create measurable and sustainable improvements in the quality and availability of TB services by bolstering Uzbekistan’s National TB Program in leadership, management, financing, and information systems. The Activity improves TB service delivery by ensuring there are skilled and motivated providers in health facilities and laboratories. It also increases access to drugs, supplies, and services. The Activity assists communities in reducing TB stigma, providing comprehensive support services, and ensuring patients complete treatment. This is the first USAID-Uzbekistan bilateral activity and builds upon 20 years and nearly $60 million of U.S. Government investment into Uzbekistan’s national TB mitigation efforts.
USAID TB Free UZ aims to reduce the burden of TB by implementing targeted interventions. The Activity will increase the effectiveness of TB services for all forms of TB, improve preparedness to maintain TB services, and strengthen TB systems.
The Activity will support the National TB Program (NTP) to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of priority functions and mechanisms in the TB response by:
- Strengthening the capacity of people and institutions
- Improving data availability, use, and system interoperability
- Operationalizing policies and guidelines