Globally, TB continues to one of the top 10 killers in the world even after a steady increase in political will and commitment to eradicate TB. We believe that this failure can be attributed only to the missing link between the affected communities and policy makers. We can only end TB by meaningfully engaging with and empowering affected communities to demand the services they need. Hence, GCTA is developing training modules for building capacity of affected community to be “Change agents/TB champions” who can further assist the National TB Programs at country level for finding the missing cases of TB and ensuring timely diagnosis, treatment and care for all those in need.
The training module has 3 components, basics of TB treatment literacy, advocacy and communication. GCTA in the recent past has conducted several trainings across the globe using similar modules.
In order to validate the module and get valuable feedback from partners, GCTA organised a stakeholders and partner consultation. Participants included community members most affected by TB and HIV and their networks/forums along with national NGOs working on TB/HIV. We were joined by representatives from champion organizations like Touched by TB, Indian Drug Users Forum, Delhi Drug Users Forum, All India Network of Sex Workers, Delhi Network of Positive People, Tweet Foundation, REACH India, TB Alert India, International Treatment Preparedness Coalition and HIV/AIDS India Alliance. The consultation was held in the premises of India HIV/AIDS Alliance on 15th March 2019.