World TB Day 2023 Theme, History, Significance, Details

World Tuberculosis (TB) Day is observed on March 24 every year to raise public awareness about the devastating health, social and economic consequences of tuberculosis and to step up efforts to end the global TB epidemic.

The date marks the day in 1882 when Dr. Robert Koch announced that he had discovered the bacterium that causes TB, which opened the way towards diagnosing and curing this disease.

World Tuberculosis (TB) Day 2023 Theme: ‘Yes! We can end TB!’

World TB Day 2023, with the theme ‘Yes! We can end TB!’, aims to inspire hope and encourage high-level leadership, increased investments, faster uptake of new WHO recommendations, adoption of innovations, accelerated action, and multisectoral collaboration to combat the TB epidemic.

This year is critical, with opportunities to raise visibility and political commitment at the 2023 UN High-Level Meeting on TB. The spotlight of World TB Day will be on urging countries to ramp up progress in the lead-up to the 2023 UN High-Level Meeting on TB.

WHO will also issue a call to action with partners urging Member States to accelerate the rollout of the new WHO-recommended shorter all-oral treatment regimens for drug-resistant TB.