Two ITM partner laboratories become new members of WHO's Supranational Reference Laboratory Network

According to the WHO, an estimated 10.7 million people fell ill with tuberculosis (TB) worldwide in 2024, including 1.2 million children. Multidrug-resistant TB continues to be a public health crisis and a threat to global health security. In 2024, only around 40% of people with drug-resistant TB accessed treatment. TB can be fatal without effective treatment.

Because of Rwanda's successes with their strong national TB control programme, WHO has already designated the Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC)'s laboratory as a candidate SRL in 2022 to support Francophone African countries, including the Comoros and Madagascar.

The RBC, Rwanda's central health implementation agency under the Ministry of Health, is an ITM partner institute. From 2021 to 2025, the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation funded a programme to strengthen diagnostic laboratory capacity,  interpretation of diagnostic results, bioinformatics, statistical analysis and surveillance, through technology and knowledge sharing with ITM. Achieving recognised SRL status, which was the main objective of this programme, will enable Rwanda, a country with a medium TB prevalence amidst high-burden countries, to more effectively control drug-resistant tuberculosis also by supporting countries in the region.

Nália Ismael, Head of the Health Technology Development Division at INS says: "Mozambique's designation as a supranational TB reference laboratory is both a recognition of the country's scientific excellence and a commitment to global health. This achievement reflects the dedication and expertise of researchers and technicians, and it strengthens Mozambique's role in providing specialized diagnostic support to other nations particularly for African Portuguese Speaking Countries. By enhancing local capacity for high-quality resistance testing in countries heavily affected by tuberculosis, this milestone accelerates treatment research and contributes to improved patient outcomes. It is a step of national and continental importance, reinforcing Mozambique’s leadership in the fight against TB."

Leen Rigouts, Senior Researcher and Head of the SRL laboratory at ITM Antwerp: "This milestone is the result of the concerted efforts and talents of the researchers in Rwanda and Mozambique. ITM is proud to have accompanied and supported this journey. This increased capacity to conduct high quality resistance testing in countries where TB is still very much present will help advance research on treatments that can benefit patients worldwide, also in Belgium.