Call To Action for TB and HIV Community Activists and Advocates To
Stop Tuberculosis (TB)
 

This year World TB Day is being marked on 24th of March, 2005. This day provides an opportunity to focus on the impact of TB and act as a call to draw attention, resources, and action for TB elimination. It is unconscionable that TB is a disease that has a cure but still kills 5000 people everyday. People living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) are disproportionately impacted by TB and are 50% more likely than HIV negative people to get TB. TB continues to be a leading cause of death amongst PLWHA.

In the spirit of the World TB Day, the Treatment Action Group takes this opportunity to invite TB and HIV activists to participate in the Stop TB Partnership to address the global impact of HIV and non-HIV related TB through policy advocacy. The call for activist involvement was initiated in March 2004 at the Stop TB Partnership Coordinating Board meeting when a position was created on their Coordinating Board for communities affected by TB and by HIV-related TB. In addition to the Coordinating Board, community representatives are needed on the Core Group of each of the Partnership's seven Working Groups. The general membership of the Working Groups is said to be open to all as well. After discussions at the 4th TB/HIV Working Group meeting (Addis Ababa, September 2004), the 3rd International TB/HIV Community Workshop (Paris, November 2004), and the 1st Advocacy & Communications Working Group meeting (Geneva, February 2005), and with input from the Stop TB Partnership, the Treatment Action Group is spearheading this process to bring on community activists to play an increasingly lineintegral role in all levels of the Stop TB Partnership.

Please read through the following frequently asked questions to ascertain if you are a good fit for this important role in the fight to reduce TB and HIV.

Sincerely,

Javid Syed
Director, TB/HIV Project
Treatment Action Group

Q+A on the Global Partnership to Stop TB

What is the Stop TB Partnership?

Stop TB is a global movement to accelerate social and political action to stop the spread of TB around the world through increasing access, security, and support to:

  • Ensure that every TB patient has access to treatment and cure
  • Stop Transmission of TB
  • Protect vulnerable populations from TB
  • Reduce the social and economic toll that TB exerts on families, communities, and nations.

Stop TB Partnership has 7 Working Groups, each with a specific focus. Additional information for each can be accessed on www.stoptb.org. The working groups are:

  1. Advocacy, Communications, and Social Mobilization Working Group
  2. DOTS Expansion Working Group
  3. DOTS Plus Multiple Drug Resistance TB Working Group
  4. New Diagnostics Working Group
  5. New Drugs Working Group
  6. New Vaccines Working Group
  7. TB/HIV Working Group

What are the Community Representatives' Roles and Responsibilities for the Coordinating Board and Working Groups?

  1. Communicating community issues to the board or working group.
  2. Strengthening and enhancing awareness of the relevant activities and concerns of the affected communities.
  3. Organizing and prioritizing information about communities' issues to influence Partnership policies and activities.
  4. Ensuring that the Partnership is inclusive, responsive, and fosters meaningful participation by affected communities at all levels.
  5. Communicating Board and Partnership issues and activities to the communities.
  6. Strengthening and enhancing community awareness and participation of the activities and concerns of the Board and Partnership.
  7. Communicating Stop TB Partnership information to communities, soliciting their input, and bringing it back to the Board and Partnership.
  8. Building support for community view points on the Working Group or Coordinating Board and securing support for Stop TB activities at a country level.
  9. Assisting in developing key strategic and policy positions.

What are the time requirements?

    For the Coordinating Board (CB):
  • The CB meet between two to four times a year in different location.
  • Ad hoc and ongoing task forces are in existence at any given time.
  • Over one day a month should be allowed to work on CB activities.

    For the Working Groups (WG):
  • Each WG has its own schedule of approximately annual meetings.
  • Several WGs have Core Groups (CGs) that meet more often.
  • Several WGs have ad hoc or ongoing subcommittees or task forces.

Who should apply?

    TB and or HIV activist are encouraged to apply, especially if they have:
  1. The capacity to commit adequate time to the CB or WG activities
  2. Access to adequate staff or community support to carry out duties assigned as board members.
  3. A record of effective advocacy work in the affected communities
  4. A record of participation in community-based advocacy networks
  5. The ability to participate in CB / WG meetings, activities and task forces

What are the recommended numbers of Community Representatives sought?

    Coordinating Board (CB):
  • One member, one alternate

    Working Group Core Membership:
  • Six of the seven WGs are seeking 2 community participants for their Core Groups.
  • The Advocacy, Communication, and Social Mobilization Working Group currently has an open Core Group with five Core Group members.

    Working Group General Membership:
  • All the working groups have open membership.

How Can I Apply?

    By April 8, 2005, send in the following information to Javidattag@gmail.com:
  • Letter of interest stating whether you are interested in the Coordinating Board, the Core Group (CG), or General Membership (GM) positions and why. If applying for the CG or GM, please specify which Working Group(s).
  • Your resumé/CV.
  • Contact information/email addresses for 3 references who can vouch for your activist work in relation to TB and/ or HIV.

What is the Process of Selection?

  • Each applicant will be evaluated based on their demonstrated ability to fulfill the Roles and Responsibilities outlined above.
  • Applicants will be evaluated by an Ad Hoc Community Task Force that was formed at the First Advocacy, Communication, and Social Mobilization Working Group in February 2005.
  • Recommended applications will be forwarded to the Stop TB Partnership and the Working Group leadership and co-chairs, by April 30th, 05.

Ad hoc Community Task Force Members

Dario Abarca, Ecuadorian Coalition of PLWHA, Ecuador
Beverley Figaji, Multi-Purpose Centre, Namibia
Case Gordon, TBTV.org, France
Tamara Gvaramadze, Georgian Plus Group, Georgia
Mark Harrington, TAG, USA
Bertrand Kampoer, FSS/MST-SIDA, Cameroon
Jeanne Mulenga, TBTV.org, Zambia
Ezio Tavora dos Santos Filho, Grupo Pela Vidda, Brazil
Ted Torfoss, LHL, Norway
Winstone Zulu, Zambia

Background documents on partnership
The documents are Word files except the Manual of Procedures also available as a Web link. Please email the Project Director if you have difficulties accessing these files.

• Setting up a process for selecting community reps to the Stop TB Partnership
With attachments in zipped file: Draft Manual of Procedures for the Stop TB Partnership, Announcement: NGO candidates for the Stop TB Coordinating Board, Draft Document: NGO participation in the Coordinating Board of the Global Partnership to Stop TB, Stop TB Coordinating Board-Terms of Office and staggering members, Basic Framework for the Global Partnership to Stop TB. Zipped file of Word docs.

• Draft Manual of Procedures for the Stop TB Partnership (Roles, Functions and Procedures)
TB/HIV Project Index TAG index