Source: Ukraine: online media: “KID"
Published on: 16 May, 2007 16:31 p.m
WWW: http://zadonbass.org/allnews/message.html?id=55678 
 
Today, Foundation for Development of Ukraine (Corporate Foundation of System Capital Management) has launched “Stop TB” national project.
 
The project targets to stop TB epidemic in Ukraine. “Tuberculosis is a national disaster. This infection can slam into every house, every family. No one is safe from it. Just think about the following figures: Ukraine numbers 600,000 only registered TB-infected people, with 120,000 of them having an open TB. Every year adds another 40,000. TB wins every second we lose”, said Rinat Akhmetov, President of Foundation for Development of Ukraine and project initiator.
 
“I am well aware of what TB is. Unfortunately my family suffered from this disaster too. My brother had a serious form of TB. He has just a half of a lung left. We were fighting with the whole family for him. And only because of that did he defeat TB”, shared the MP.
 
According to him, “we should ask ourselves: “What can we do to eliminate the disease?”. First, we need to admit that TB is a national disaster. Second, we need to unite. Third, and the most important, we need to manage the process of fighting against TB effectively. And I am strongly convinced that with all that we will not just be fighting against TB, but we will defeat it”, he said.
 
The above 5-year Program, which represents one of the main steps towards elimination of TB consists of three key areas of activity:
 
1. Special projects focused on improvement of the TB regulatory framework, creation of a training center for TB doctors in Ukraine, restoration of an anti-TB health resort for children of Ukraine, support of scientific and sociological researches, as well as holding scientific and practical conferences.
 
2. A nation-wide awareness raising campaign promoting a healthy style of living and changing attitude to TB, creating hot lines and consulting centers, etc.
 
3. Regional programs on creation and implementation of effective TB fighting system.
 
Anatoliy Zabolotny, Director of SCM’s Corporate Foundation for Development of Ukraine, stated that the regional five-year-Program will receive UAH 100m of investment. Yelena Petryayeva, Vice-Chairman of Donetsk Regional Council, specified that UAH 50m will be provided by the Foundation, UAH 50m – by the regional budget, and UAH 16.5m – by budgets of cities located in Donetsk region.
 
On the whole, the project targets to consolidate efforts of all stakeholders to solve the problem of TB. The authorities, international and Ukrainian NGOs, and business officials have already joined the project and signed the Ukraine without TB Memorandum. The list of signatories includes Rinat Akhmetov, President of Foundation; Vladimir Logvinenko, Donetsk Region Governor; and Anatoly Blizniuk, Donetsk Regional Council Chairman.