On May 19, 2014, the 67th World Health Assembly (WHA) adopted WHO’s “Global strategy and targets for tuberculosis prevention, care and control after 2015”. 1 This post-2015 global tuberculosis strategy, labelled the End TB Strategy, was shaped during the past 2 years. A wide range of stakeholders—from ministries of health and national tuberculosis programmes to technical and scientific institutions, financial and development partners, civil society and health activists, non-governmental organisations, and the private sector—contributed to its development. 2 The strategy has a vision of making the world free of tuberculosis, with zero deaths, disease, and suffering due to the disease (see appendix p 1 for summary of the End TB Strategy). In 2013, 9 million people fell ill with tuberculosis and 1· 5 million died; about a quarter of them were HIV positive. 3 Poor and deprived groups also bore the brunt of the enormous socioeconomic burden imposed by the disease and deaths. Concerned by this persistent human suffering due to tuberculosis, but encouraged by the progress achieved during the past two decades and recognising the need to mount a multisectoral response to effectively address the problem, the health ministers at the WHA approved WHO’s proposal to push the limit of ambition to “end the global tuberculosis epidemic” by 2035, marked by well defined milestones and targets set along the way. 4 Ending the tuberculosis epidemic implies bringing the levels of tuberculosis in the whole world down to converge with those already attained by many rich countries: fewer than ten new tuberculosis cases occurring per 100 000 population per year amounting to 90% reduction in tuberculosis incidence and tuberculosis deaths reduced by 95%. The rich countries achieved remarkable reductions in the tuberculosis burden not only by delivering adequate tuberculosis services, but also by pursuing universal access to health care and social protection while rapidly improving nutrition and economic conditions. Ending the tuberculosis epidemic in high-incidence countries needs a similar approach that guarantees access to high-quality tuberculosis care and prevention to all while simul taneously addressing the social determinants of tuberculosis. 5

To this effect, elimination of catastrophic costs that tuberculosis-affected families face is an important milestone to be achieved under the End TB Strategy well within the next decade. Importantly, though, achievement of universal access to currently available methods of tuberculosis care and prevention will not be enough to end the epidemic within two decades. Global investments and efforts are also essential to develop improved methods to diagnose, treat, and prevent tuberculosis. Equal emphasis on achievement