WHO investment case finds TB screening plus preventive treatment in four modelled countries can return up to US$ 54 for each dollar invested
13 October 2026
WHO published the second edition of "Funding a tuberculosis-free future: an investment case for screening and preventive treatment" on 12 October 2026.
The modelling study examines the costs and benefits of tuberculosis (TB) screening plus TB preventive treatment (TPT) in four countries: Brazil, Georgia, Kenya and South Africa, which WHO says may serve as examples for other settings with a similar epidemiological context.
It finds that relatively modest investments in screening plus TPT can achieve significant health and economic benefits in all four countries and provide a return of up to US$ 54 for each dollar invested. "Up to" is a ceiling; the WHO page does not give the figure country by country.
The goal is to help countries advocate for and allocate more resources to scale up screening and TPT, towards new targets committed by Heads of State at the 2023 UN High-Level Meeting on TB.
It is a 17-page technical document produced by WHO's HIV, TB, Hepatitis and STIs team.
In plain words
TPT TB preventive treatment — Treatment given to people at risk to stop TB infection from becoming active disease.
Investment case Costs and benefits assessment — A study that weighs the money needed against the health and economic returns.