Geneva – Heads of State and Government, TB survivors, affected communities, technical partners, researchers, private sector representatives, and other key stakeholders will descend on New York next week to put TB in the spotlight. The week will be marked by several side-events organized and supported by multiple Permanent Country Missions to the UN in New York and numerous TB stakeholders, including but not limited to the Stop TB Partnership, WHO, USAID, WEF, Global Fund, African Union, IFRC, KNCV, MSH, PATH, UNITAID, UNICEF, UNAIDS, UNF, CDC, GFAN, OSF, PIH, TB People, Nikkei and J&J.
The culmination of these events will be the first-ever UN High-Level Meeting (UN HLM) on TB where Heads of State will adopt the historic UN Political Declaration on TB on the morning of 26 September. New York will wake up to the largest ever gathering of Heads of State to discuss TB. This will be the first time TB has been addressed in the UN General Assembly. At least 40 Heads of State are expected to address the High-Level Meeting plenary sessions.
Keynote speeches will be delivered by António Guterres, UN Secretary-General; Bill Gates, Co-founder & Co-chair, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; H.E. Peng Liyuan, First Lady of China; H.E. Aisha Buhari, First Lady of Nigeria; Dr Tedros A. Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General; Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, Chair of the Stop TB Partnership and Minister of Health of South Africa; and numerous TB survivors, community representatives, heads of organizations and partners.
See the Program of the UN HLM on TB here.
The TB week will start with a TB Innovation Summit on Sunday, 23 September co-hosted by the Stop TB Partnership, together with J&J, UN Foundation, Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, and the World Economic Forum.The event will convene a unique mix of over 300 leaders from the private and public sector, including TB survivors, academics, civil society and community leaders, donors, and technical partners, to discuss the critical role that innovation must play in delivering the current tools to those in need, developing the next generation of solutions for tomorrow, and, ultimately, driving progress toward our shared goal of ending TB. The event will also provide a platform for organizations to announce new commitments for TB ahead of the UN HLM.
Source: www.stoptb.org