Objective and methods Worldwide, tuberculosis (TB) is the leading cause of death from a single infectious agent. In many countries, national TB prevalence surveys are the only way to reliably measure the burden of TB disease and can also provide other evidence to inform national efforts to improve TB detection and treatment. Our objective was to synthesise the results and lessons learned from national surveys completed in Africa between 2008 and 2016, to complement a previous review for Asia. Results Twelve surveys completed in Africa were identified: Ethiopia (2010–2011), Gambia (2011–2013), Ghana (2013), Kenya (2015–2016), Malawi (2013–2014), Nigeria (2012), Rwanda (2012), Sudan (2013–2014), Tanzania (2011–2012), Uganda (2014–2015), Zambia (2013–2014) and Zimbabwe (2014). The eligible population in all surveys was people aged ≥15 years who met residency criteria. In total 588 105 individuals participated, equivalent to 82% (range 57–96%) of those eligible. The prevalence of bacteriologically confirmed pulmonary TB disease in those ≥15 years varied from 119 (95% CI 79–160) per 100 000 population in Rwanda and 638 (95% CI 502–774) per 100 000 population in Zambia. The male:female ratio was 2.0 overall, ranging from 1.2 (Ethiopia) to 4.1 (Uganda). Prevalence per 100 000 population generally increased with age, but the absolute number of cases was usually highest among those aged 35–44 years. Of identified TB cases, 44% (95% CI 40–49) did not report TB symptoms during screening and were only identified as eligible for diagnostic testing due to an abnormal chest X‐ray. The overall ratio of prevalence to case notifications was 2.5 (95% CI 1.8–3.2) and was consistently higher for men than women. Many participants who did report TB symptoms had not sought care; those that had were more likely to seek care in a public health facility. HIV prevalence was systematically lower among prevalent cases than officially notified TB patients with an overall ratio of 0.5 (95% CI 0.3–0.7). The two main study limitations were that none of the surveys included people <15 years, and 5 of 12 surveys did not have data on HIV status. Conclusions National TB prevalence surveys implemented in Africa between 2010 and 2016 have contributed substantial new evidence about the burden of TB disease, its distribution by age and sex, and gaps in TB detection and treatment. Policies and practices to improve access to health services and reduce under‐reporting of detected TB cases are needed, especially among men. All surveys provide a valuable baseline for future assessment of trends in TB disease burden.

Background: There was an urgent need for peer-assisted learning in the medical laboratory science program following examination failure in hematology, microbiology, and parasitology courses. Aim: The present study aimed to explore the effect of peers in supporting the low achiever medical laboratory science students at Alfajr College for Science and Technology. Methods: An experimental study was conducted at the medical laboratory science program. According to final exam results for the end-of-semester three all low achiever students in hematology [N=76/124 (61%)], microbiology [N=61/124 (49%)], parasitology [N=54/124 (48%)] and chemical pathology [N= 55/125 (36%)] courses assigned to peer-assisted learning groups by high achiever students (senior) under the lecturers' supervision. The results of the end-of-semester four were compared to the end-of- semester three exam results, and the differences in achievement were measured. Results: Students' achievements were significantly higher in the semester four final exam in parasitology, hematology, microbiology, and chemical pathology courses (P. value=<0.001; <0.001, <0.001 and <0.001), respectively. No significant differences in the histopathology course (P. value= 0.511). On the other hand, the achievement of high achiever students was significantly improved in parasitology (P. value= 0.006), while in microbiology and hematology courses was not (P. value= 0.046, and <0.001) respectively. Conclusions: Peer-assisted learning significantly positively affects low-achiever students. However, further research into peer-assisted learning on high-achievers as supporter students' is required.