Saturday, March 18 2006 10:41 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

United Nations: The UN health agency has launched a major initiative to reduce the 1.7 million deaths caused by tuberculosis every year and help meet the Millennium Development Goals(MDGs) which seek to eliminate or decrease by half economic, social and other global ills.

The Geneva-based World Health Organisation said the new initiative underpins the 'Global Plan to Stop TB 2006-2015' an ambitious US$ 56 billion project which will treat 50 million people for the disease, halve its prevalence and death rate and save 14 million lives if carried out as planned.

By creating new partnerships and helping to strengthen health systems, the new strategy is structured to meet health- related MDGs, it said.

The strategy builds on the TB-control approach known as DOTS, promoted by WHO to treat over 22 million patients since 1995, while also targetting the combined TB/HIV and drug- resistant MDR-TB strains of the disease.

DOTS remains central to TB control, WHO said.

With DOTS programmes now established in 183 countries, the Stop TB Strategy injects new energies to make efforts more comprehensive and effective, it said.

The Stop TB Strategy was developed during a consultation process involving international health partners over a two- year period.