On World Tuberculosis Day, observed on March 24, a report highlighted that 21 percent of tuberculosis (TB) patients in Bangladesh remain undiagnosed. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the country has an estimated 379,000 TB patients, while the National Tuberculosis Control Program identified 301,564 cases last year. Experts warn that untreated patients continue to spread the infection, increasing the risk of new cases.

Program data show that 56 percent of identified patients were men and 42 percent were women, with an average of 826 new cases and 19 deaths reported daily. WHO figures, however, suggest a higher daily death toll. The Global Tuberculosis Report 2023 ranks Bangladesh seventh worldwide for TB burden, with 42,000 deaths recorded in 2022.

Globally, around 10.6 million people have contracted TB in recent years, affecting men, women, and children across regions. World Tuberculosis Day commemorates Robert Koch’s 1882 discovery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium responsible for the disease.