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Thursday, 22 March 2012
Page: 2577

Senator PRATT (Western Australia) (12:16): I, and also on behalf of Senator Rhiannon, move:

That the Senate—

   (a)   recognises that 24 March 2012 is World Tuberculosis Day, in observance of a preventable and treatable disease that still claims the lives of up to 1.5 million people every year, mostly in developing countries and that:

      (i)   one third of the world's population is currently infected with tubercle bacillus,

      (ii)   the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the largest number of new tuberculosis cases in 2008 occurred in the southeast Asian region, accounting for 35 per cent of incident cases globally, and

      (iii)   the number of new cases of tuberculosis each year is still increasing in Africa, the Eastern Mediterranean and southeast Asia;

   (b)   acknowledges that tuberculosis is responsible for 1 in 4 AIDS-related deaths, making it the leading killer of people living with HIV and that:

      (i)   less than 7 per cent of people living with HIV are screened for tuberculosis,

      (ii)   people living with both HIV and tuberculosis infection are much more likely to develop tuberculosis, and

      (iii)   WHO estimates that by scaling up services and providing integrated HIV and tuberculosis care, it is possible to save the lives of up to 1 million people living with HIV by 2015,

   (c)   notes that:

      (i)   more than two-thirds of international financing for tuberculosis services is currently provided by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria,

      (ii)   the Global Fund is a key international body providing critical basic services to support many developing countries in the fight against tuberculosis, and

      (iii)   Australia is a strong supporter of the Global Fund; and

   (d)   encourages Australia to continue to work bilaterally and with other international donors to address tuberculosis, including through the Global Fund.

Question agreed to.