The money has been spent on various programs like improving basic TB prevention and control, services, upgrading laboratory capacity, and building a foundation to introduce new diagnostic technologies.

It has also been allocated to drug resistance surveys and surveillance in cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other partners.

“We must work together to improve services and engage the private sector to bring additional resources to fight the disease,” the ambassador said.

The US-funded activities in Vietnam now focus on strategies to reduce the burden of TB amongst people living with HIV, like supporting comprehensive care and treatment, and providing HIV tests for TB patients and vice versa.

Over 20,000 TB patients were tested at more than 100 TB clinics in 19 provinces last year.

Furthermore, US-funded tests raised the suspicion that more than 12,000 people living with HIV/AIDS were also infected with TB.

The press release says Vietnam ranks 12^th on WHO’s list of 22 countries with the highest incidence of TB.

While the number of deaths from TB has decreased worldwide since 1990, the disease still claims over 1.7 million lives each year.

Moreover, about 10 percent of TB patients are also infected with HIV, and TB is the leading cause of death for AIDS patients.

The disease is believed to be the third leading cause of infectious disease-related death worldwide, after HIV/AIDS and malaria.

Falling on March 24th, World Tuberculosis Day 2009 is themed “I am Stopping TB,” which is the continuation of a two-year campaign launched last year.

The campaign is about celebrating the lives and stories of people affected by TB together with those who have contributed toward the global fight against the disease.

Tuberculosis is a contagious lung disease that spreads through the air, including through coughing and sneezing. WHO said on its website that someone in the world is newly infected with TB bacilli every second.

Reported by Thanh Nguyen