Nils Billo MD, MPH

Dr. Nils E Billo has been Executive Director of the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union) since 1992 when it was a very small organization with just about a dozen staff and consultants, who focused on tuberculosis. During this long stint, spanning over two decades, Dr. Billo has been instrumental in helping the Union grow from strength to strength—from a fledging federation to a leading international health organization, with more than 10,000 members in 152 countries, and some 300 staff and consultants working from Paris and other offices in 11 countries. The Union's mandate has expanded and gone beyond tuberculosis and lung disease to include other public health issues as well, such as child lung health, HIV/AIDS, the pandemic of diseases caused by tobacco use, and the rise of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). In this interview, given exclusively to Citizen News Service - CNS at the 43rd Union World Conference on Lung Health, Dr. Billo talks about what has changed in the world of TB over this period of twenty years, and the current problems impeding efforts to eradicate this dreaded disease which, despite being curable, takes a huge toll of human lives.