Windhoek, 1 March 2011 -- Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of the major public health concerns in Namibia with 13 332 TB cases reported in 2009. The emergence of drug-resistance tuberculosis (DR-TB), which is more difficult to treat, is on the rise. TB is also the world’s biggest killer of people living with HIV. In Namibia, 60% of TB patients are HIV positive.Namibia is one of the few countries, in which patients can receive free comprehensive care for both TB and HIV.

A national road-show campaign called “On the Move against TB” organized by the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) and its partners will kick off on Monday, 7 Marchand culminate on World TB Day, 24 March 2011 in Rundu. The main event will take place on:

Date: 24th March 2011

Venue: RunduSport Stadium

Time: 08H00

The road-show comprised of two TB convoys – one travelling from the south and the other from the north - will cover 4,000km, passing through 20 towns visiting communities, health clinics, and regional health centres over 17 days, disseminatingTB awareness messages. The two main TB messages the Ministry aims to spread are:

“coughing for 2 weeks? get TESTED for TB!
“on treatment for TB? COMPLETE it!
Recognizing that TB management is a shared responsibility, this year’s national World TB Road-show campaign is made possible through partnership with a number of organizations such as: World Health Organization, Penduka, Red Cross, Project Hope, COHENA, TransNamib, Joels Trucking Company, Walvis Bay Corridor Group, NBC, College of the Arts, Polytechnic, Nampower, Social Security, Nedbank, among others.

Issued by: Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) and the World Health Organization

For more details, contact:

MoHSS: ACSM Focal Person: Ms Penny Uukunde – email - uukundep [at] nacop.net (uukundep[at]nacop[dot]net) , Ph0811277465

WHO: Communications & Advocacy Officer: Michelle Thulkanam – email - thulkanamm [at] na.afro.who.int (thulkanamm[at]na[dot]afro[dot]who[dot]int) , Ph-+26461-255-191/+264-81-423-0556