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The LIGHT Consortium annual meetings are pivotal for strengthening partnerships and collaborations within and outside the consortium—including key national stakeholders and TB-affected communities. These meetings provide a platform for partners across LIGHT countries—Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Uganda, and the UK—to share progress, discuss upcoming opportunities for impact, and strengthen relations through exchange of learnings, experiences, challenges and innovative solutions towards transforming TB pathways to care.
The Year 5 Partners’ Meeting, held in Abuja, Nigeria (22-24 October 2024), was hosted by the Zankli Research Centre (ZRC), LIGHT’s partner in Nigeria. The gathering brought together consortium partners, alongside key stakeholders including representatives from the National TB and Leprosy Programme (NTLP), the External Consortium Advisory Group (ECAG), Country Advisory Group in Nigeria (NCAG), Nigerian Parliamentarians, and TB-affected community members.
The meeting showcased LIGHT’s progress across various areas, including co-creation and testing of research interventions, participatory action research, modelling work, capacity strengthening, and research uptake. Discussions also highlighted emerging impacts on gender-responsive TB programming and policy dialogues.
LIGHT key stakeholders engaging with Nigeria’s Parliamentary Committee on HIV/AIDS, TB, and Malaria. Photo credit: LIGHT
Key Sessions
1. Panel with NTLP and ECAG: This session served as an important checkpoint for assessing how LIGHT’s progress aligns with national and international TB priorities. The panelists identified challenges, successes and opportunities to guide impactful planning over the program’s final 18 months.
2. Panel with External Stakeholders: Discussions with representatives from NTLP, Global Fund, NCAG, Global TB Caucus, and other TB organisations, focused on strengthening gender-responsive and equity-focused TB prevention and care by leveraging LIGHT’s evidence to inform policies and practices within national and governmental institutions in Nigeria. Key topics included meaningful community engagement, leadership to address health equity challenges, and opportunities within the funding landscape to support transformative programming. Panelists emphasised actionable priorities for advancing gender-responsive approaches, highlighting the critical role of collaboration and reaching out to politicians with clear key asks informed by evidence, and strategic alignment in achieving sustainable impact.
3. Visit to Esu Karu Palace: This cultural engagement underscored the vital role of traditional leaders in raising awareness about TB and driving behavioural change at the community level, particularly on issues with strong cultural significance. Insights from ZRC’s focal points revealed how the involvement and influence of these leaders can successfully shift attitudes and practices (e.g. reducing TB-related stigma), boosting the impact of LIGHT’s research.
4. Project Carousel: This interactive session allowed project teams to present their research and community-driven activities through hosting rotating groups at their tables, sparking engaging discussions, questions and observations. It combined fun with serious deliberations, making it a highlight of the meeting. The enthusiasm was evident, with questions flowing long after the session had ended.
5. Nigeria’s Parliamentary Committee Panel: An evening session with Nigeria’s Parliamentary Committee on HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria emphasised the critical need for collaborative action to end TB. The discussions focused on key priorities such as ensuring government accountability and advocating for cross-ministerial social protection measures to support individuals affected by TB. This dialogue reinforced the importance of unified efforts in driving sustainable impact and advancing efforts towards ending TB in Nigeria.
Conclusion
The meeting was a resounding affirmation of the LIGHT Consortium’s commitment to advancing TB research and action through collaboration, innovation and meaningful community engagement. From exchanging strategies to addressing lingering challenges, the meeting emphasised the importance of continuous reflection on our impact and the refinement of approaches to drive sustainable change.
Key takeaways reinforced the need for keeping TB at the forefront of policymakers’ agendas, leveraging personal experiences for advocacy, and adopting intersectional perspectives to amplify the LIGHT narrative. By strengthening the capacity of NTLPs, encouraging data-driven decision-making, and holding governments accountable, LIGHT continues to create pathways for transformative TB impact.
As the Consortium looks ahead to its final 18 months, the collective energy, insights and partnerships forged in Abuja will serve as a foundation for shaping more effective, community-centered solutions. LIGHT will capitalise on this momentum to create relevant and practical outputs, such as learning packages and guides, briefs, enhanced data collection tools, publications and case studies. These open-access resources will not only reflect LIGHT’s substantial outputs relating to TB and gender but will also ensure sustained learning beyond the lifetime of the programme.