Our patroness, HRH Princess Margriet, attends TB conference

Her Royal Highness Princess Margriet of the Netherlands will attend The Union President’s Centennial Dinner in the ‘Ridderzaal’ (Hall of Knights) on October 23^rd, the eve of the 49^th Union World Conference on Lung Health. On October 24^th she will speak at the opening of this international conference in the World Forum in the Hague. As patroness of KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, Princess Margriet is united in the fight against TB. Princess Akishino of Japan will also be present at both events.

With 1.6 million deaths per year, tuberculosis is the world’s deadliest infectious disease. The Conference (24^th to 27th October 2018) brings together some 3,000 TB experts from more than 125 countries. The International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease is the organizer of the Conference and the municipality of The Hague and KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation are local hosts.

Princess Margriet has been committed to the fight against TB since 2010. As patroness of the Dutch KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, the international centre of expertise in this field, she follows in the footsteps of her great-grandmother, Queen Emma. The former Queen lost her sister Sophie to tuberculosis at the age of 15. At that time, TB was the leading cause of death in the Netherlands. As earlier patronesses, Queens Wilhelmina and Juliana were also connected to KNCV tuberculosis foundation, which this year marks its 115-year existence.

Tuberculosis is now under control in the Netherlands. On Friday 26^th October, during the 49th Union World Conference on Lung Health, special attention will be paid to the history of TB control in the Netherlands. This will take place in the Community Space of the World Forum, an area accessible to all for free. For the TB professionals, the conference agenda includes developments in the field of multi-drug resistant TB, new medicines, stigma reduction and childhood TB.

Also to speak at The Union President’s Centennial Dinner on the eve of the conference, will be Bruno Bruins, the Minister for Medical Care.

FOTOCREDIT: RVD – Anko Stoffels