South Africa is among World Health Organisation’s (WHO) list of 30 high-burden tuberculosis countries and has one of the highest incidence rates of notified tuberculosis in the world.
Paul Mashatile, deputy president, says it is alarming that South Africa is one of the top 30 nations currently struggling with the pandemic of Tuberculosis (TB).
Mashatile spoke on Friday at Tlhabane Stadium in Rustenburg as part of commemorations for World Tuberculosis Day.
Mashatile also unveiled the National Strategic Plan for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), and sexually transmitted infections. He believes it is unacceptable that South Africa has the highest rates of tuberculosis and HIV infection in the world.
“We should keep in mind that our country is the most behind schedule in terms of meeting the aforementioned TB targets, including those related to the 2018 UN high-level meeting on TB.” It is concerning that, according to the most recent SA TB prevalence survey, our country is one of 30 high TB-burdened countries, accounting for 87% of the burden. It is one of ten countries with a triple burden of tuberculosis, HIV, and multidrug-resistant tuberculosis,” said Mashatile.
However, AIDS activists interfered with the commemoration in Rustenburg and demanded an apology from Bushy Maape, the premier of the North West, for skipping a meeting on Thursday. People Living with HIV (PLHIV) interrupted Maape’s address. Respect for these populations would not be accepted, according to Mluleki Zazini, chair of the PLHIV.