TB is once again the world’s leading infectious killer, causing 1.3 million deaths last year and among them children. Given this, it is critical that we all mobilize attention, funding, and action for TB response at local, national, and global level. Now more than ever, we ALL must come together to end this terrible disease.

The 2024 World TB Day theme is the same as last year “Yes! We Can End TB”. The theme brings attention to the collective power and role that everyone must play to achieve the commitments made by world leaders at the United Nations High-Level Meeting on TB during the United Nations General Assembly in September 2023 to end TB by 2030.

On this day of 24 March, Students And Youth Working on reproductive Health Action Team (SAYWHAT) reaffirms our commitment to mobilize young people for youth involvement in the fight against TB, contributing towards reaching the 2023 UN Political Declaration on TB targets, and eliminating TB as a public health burden by 2030.

The theme “Yes! We Can End TB” brings hope and builds on the amazing work done by SAYWHAT TB champions in 2023, who meaningfully engaged in provincial, national, and regional mechanisms that review and coordinate TB responses. The SAYWHAT TB Champions model identifies students across tertiary institutions in Zimbabwe who are infected or affected by TB and train them to conduct rights-based advocacy for TB service provision including TB Literacy, TB Mental Health, TB prevention, diagnosis, and treatment referral system.

During the 22^nd edition of the International Conference on AIDS/STIs in Africa (ICASA), held in Zimbabwe from the 4^th to the 9^th of December 2023; SAYWHAT supported the 2023 cohort of TB Champions to lobby for the integration of TB with HIV/AIDS responses in Zimbabwe, Southern Africa, and the continent. TB Champions had opportunities to present TB abstracts and engage with policymakers/ implementers including representatives from the National TB Program to promote awareness on the experiences of young people in the fight against TB and HIV. Contributions made by TB champions during the regional conference, shows young people actively participating in community-led monitoring of the TB response and championing accountability on governments commitments.

On World TB Day, SAYWHAT remains devoted to our unique role of mobilizing and supporting young people who are organized for universal access to TB and HIV Services. In 2024, SAYWHAT TB champions will continue making incredible strides, raising awareness of the devastating health, social, and economic impacts of TB and calling for an end to this epidemic.

SAYWHAT encourages young people and the community to make use of the toll-free 577 to seek and access quality information on TB as well as TB responsive services. SAYWHAT calls upon everyone – political leaders, civil society, donors, researchers, TB communities, the private sector, and most importantly, each of us to contribute our unique roles in ensuring access to more and more people with TB to new diagnostics, new treatment regimens, digital technology, and artificial intelligence. We ALL have collective power to reach the 2027 High Level Meeting Political Declaration targets and end TB by 2030.