Thailand - Stop TB Partnership

Preface
On the first World TB Day of the new millennium, ministerial representatives of the 20
countries carrying 80 percent of the global tuberculosis (TB) burden adopted the Amsterdam
Declaration to Stop TB. By adopting the Declaration, these governments pledged to take bold
new steps in addressing the TB epidemic in their countries and affirmed their commitment
to “implement, monitor and evaluate” their national TB programs according to the TB control
strategy recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).
In the Declaration, the governments also expressed their will to “promot[e] the
development of . . . partnerships to stop tuberculosis with all stakeholders in society, including
government departments and organizations, the private health sector, industry, nongovernmental
organizations and the community” (emphasis added).
Public Health Watch supports independent monitoring of governmental compliance
with the Amsterdam Declaration as part of its mandate to promote informed civil
society engagement in policymaking on tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS—two closely linked diseases
that lead to millions of preventable deaths annually. Established by the Open Society
Institute’s Public Health Program in 2004, Public Health Watch also supports civil society
monitoring of governmental HIV/AIDS and TB/HIV policies, examining compliance with
the United Nations Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS and the WHO Interim Policy
on Collaborative TB/HIV Activities.
For the TB Monitoring Project, Public Health Watch civil society partners in
Bangladesh, Brazil, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Thailand have prepared assessments of national
TB policies based on a standardized questionnaire, which facilitates structured review of
governmental compliance with key elements of the Amsterdam Declaration and the WHO
TB control strategy. Public Health Watch researchers come from a range of backgrounds,
including academia, development, journalism, and independent activism, and from both
large and small nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).
The Public Health Watch monitoring methodology incorporates multiple opportunities
for dialogue and exchange with a range of policy actors during report preparation.
Researchers convene an advisory group of national TB experts, activists, and policy actors.
They prepare draft reports on the basis of input from the advisory group, desktop and field
research, interviews, and site visits. Researchers then organize in-country roundtable meetings
to invite feedback and critique from policymakers, academics, government officials,
representatives of affected communities, and other key stakeholders. Finally, Public Health
PUBLIC HEALTH WATCH MONITORING REPORTS 5