Swaziland, South Africa announce initiative to improve diagnosis, treatment of TB/HIV co-infection

"Health ministers from Swaziland and South Africa have agreed to radically change the diagnosis and treatment of the co-epidemic of [tuberculosis (TB)]/HIV in their countries," VOA News reports. "The initiative to bring about a more vigorous response to deal with TB/HIV and [multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB)] is being funded by the Global Fund [to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria], along with other partnerships, and the mining sector," the news service writes (Lewis, 3/20). "The initiative was unveiled at a press briefing in Johannesburg, South Africa on 20 March and will be formerly launched on 21 March in Mbabane, Swaziland," UNAIDS notes in an article on its webpage. "The initiative includes a package of new investments worth more than $120 million, which will be used to expedite progress against TB and HIV in the next 1000 days," the article states, adding, "The initiative will work with South African Development Community (SADC) countries to achieve the international targets of cutting deaths from TB and HIV-associated TB by half by 2015" (3/20).