Sandema, (UE), April 27, GNA- Afro Global Alliance (AGA), a Non-Governmental Organization has so far trained 20 community volunteers in Sandema in the Builsa District in the Upper East Region to sensitize people living with Tuberculosis (TB) on how to control and cure the disease.

This was made known to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) by the Programme Manager of AGA, Mr Imoro Abudu in Sandema after a sensitization community durbar on the disease, organized for traditional authorities, health worker and religious leaders among others.

He said the 20 volunteers were taught the causes of TB and its control, signs and symptoms, completion of TB cards, community entry procedures, duties of community volunteers and the strategies of encouraging TB patients to attend health facilities.

Mr Abudu said the trained volunteers were already in their respective communities visiting homes, churches, mosques, women groups to engage in behavioural change communication activities in the District.

The Programme Manager said records available indicated that TB patients who refused to go for medical attention were now willingly visiting health facilities in their numbers.

He expressed his optimism that the disease, which was so prevalent in the district, would be reduced in due course through the efforts of the volunteers.

He said his outfit would do everything possible to ensure the control and prevention of the disease in the area, by working with the Ghana Health Services, TB Voice Africa, and the Ghana National TB Control Programme.

Mr Thomas Kofi Alonsi, District Chief Executive for the area, in a speech read for him, commended Afro Global Alliance for embarking on the TB Project.

He said the disease kills more than 2 million people world wide, and this was seriously affecting productivity and that if it is not checked now, would have serious negative effects on the Ghanaian economy.

Mrs Olivia Achuliba, a Public Health Nurse at the Builsa District Health Directorate, explained that TB is a communicable disease caused by a small germ known as mycobacterium Tuberculosis and could affect all parts of the body.

She however said, most people suffer from TB affecting the lungs and this was the most infectious form of the disease, which could be spread from person to person.

She appealed to traditional, community and opinion leaders and stakeholders to encourage all TB Patients to undergo treatment to prevent the disease from being transmitted to others, who were no affected.

AGA is an NGO working in the area of prevention and control of diseases including Tuberculosis, Malaria, HIV/AIDS and other related diseases