After years of reliance on donor funding, many high TB burden countries now face a stark reality: As G7 nations slash aid, they must do more with less. But there's a silver lining. Innovations developed in the global south — such as affordable molecular tests, tongue swab sampling, and AI-powered screening tools — are ready to drive equitable TB diagnosis at scale.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, tuberculosis was the leading infectious killer among humans. For a few years, COVID-19 took the top spot. Today, TB is back as the leading infectious cause of mortality, claiming 1.23 million lives in 2024. And things are likely to get worse due to cuts to development assistance by the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations.
A recent analysis done across 26 high-burden countries, which account for 80% of the global TB burden, showed that termination of aid funding could result in as many as 10.6 million additional TB cases and 2.2 million additional TB deaths during the period 2025-2030.
About the authors
Urvashi B. Singh
Dr. Urvashi B. Singh is a senior researcher at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, and a member of national and international expert committees, reviewer, and editorial board member of national and international journals. Her research focuses on adult and pediatric tuberculosis and non-TB mycobacteria. As the India NTEP manager, she has brought in new strategy, strengthened program policies, and introduced several innovative ideas.
Sameer Kumta
Sameer Kumta is a senior program officer for tuberculosis at the Gates Foundation, a nonprofit foundation fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. He has a background in medicine, microbiology, and public health, and has worked extensively on HIV and TB.
Madhukar Pai@paimadhu
Madhukar Pai is a professor at the School of Population and Global Health at McGill University, Canada. He was previously director of the McGill International Tuberculosis Center.
