By Linda Naa Deide Aryeetey
Accra, Jan 21 GNA- The 4th Global Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) Alliance Forum slated for February 13 to 15, is to be hosted in Kigali, Rwanda.
This makes it the first time an African country will be hosting the strategic forum.
About 700 delegates from 66 countries working in non-communicable disease prevention and care are set to attend.
The forum is excepted to bring together Health Ministers, representatives of the World Bank, UNICEF, World Health Organisation (WHO), philanthropies, civil society and affected communities.
A statement issued by the NCD Alliance on Monday said the three day forum seeks to unite the NCD movement, promote knowledge exchange, share good practice and strengthen capacity to advocate for the prevention and control of NCDs.
It would be held on the theme: ‘Leadership on NCDs Towards 2025 & Beyond’, serving as a platform for delegates from around the world to strategize, coordinate and unite ahead of this year’s UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs.
The 2025 NCD Alliance Forum would be co-hosted by the NCD Alliance and Rwanda NCD Alliance, in collaboration with the Rwanda Ministry of Health and the Rwanda Biomedical Centre with the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, serving as a strategic partner.
The statement said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the WHO, is expected to address the opening ceremony of the forum.
He would be joined by ministerial representatives, experts and advocates who would participate in a series of plenaries and sessions focused on political and community leadership, financing, disease prevention and care in sub-Saharan Africa.
It said the NCD Alliance Forum would also discuss the state of global programmes around alcohol related diseases, tobacco control, oral health, diabetes, obesity and more.
The forum is being held at a time where NCDs are set to overtake infectious, maternal, neonatal, and nutritional (CMNN) diseases combined as the leading cause of mortality in sub-Saharan Africa by 2030.
Every year, 43 million people die from NCDs. These diseases – which include heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and chronic respiratory conditions; account for over 75 per cent of deaths worldwide.
The statement said despite their prevalence, NCDs are the most underfunded global health issue relative to the billions of people impacted.
It said NCDs affect everyone, everywhere, but they disproportionately impact people living in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where access to care was limited.
According to the statement, among people in LMICs, NCDs and injuries kill more people under age 40 than HIV, TB, and maternal deaths combined.
GNA