Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: President Mamnoon Hussain has expressed grave concerns over the increase in number of tuberculosis cases across the country and said that sustained and concerted efforts are required to eradicate such fatal diseases from the country.

The president stated this while talking to Indus Health Network Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr Abdul Bari who called on him at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, Islamabad on Monday.

Indus Health Network CEO Dr Abdul Bari apprised the president that Pakistan is ranked fifth in the world in terms of number of TB patients. He said that there are around three lakh patients of Tuberculosis in Pakistan and ten thousand new TB cases were being reported every year. He further informed the president that his organisation is going to launch Zero TB Campaign which will be launched during this month from Karachi.

The president underlined that in a developing country like Pakistan, apart from government, social sector has to play a major role in the provision of state of the art healthcare facilities to the masses. He added that organisations like Indus Health Network are rendering commendable services in this regard.

Mamnoon assured Dr Abdul Bari of his continuous support and patronage. He called for partnership and collaboration between government, international organisations, non-governmental organisations, community based organisations and all other stakeholders to join hands in the fight against fatal diseases like tuberculosis.

He also expressed the confidence that with our renewed commitment and collective efforts, TB will cease to be a major public health hazard in near future.