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UN Summit on NCDs announced

Major 2011 meeting to highlight global threat

Posted in NGO and IGO action on 14th May, 2010 | no responses

In an exciting step, in September 2011 the UN General Assembly will hold a Noncommunicable Disease Summit specifically addressing the threat posed by NCDs to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This will be only the 29th such summit in UN history – a reflection of the magnitude of the problem – and will discuss solutions and action.

It will bring together heads of state, as well as government representatives from oversees aid donor countries and LMICs, and public health experts. Member states will then need to invest the resources necessary to guarantee the successful implementation of the solutions discussed and identified.

The NCD problem is urgent: WHO estimates that global deaths from NCDs will continue to rise over the next 10 years, with the African region expected to see the highest relative increase (27%). In particular, NCDs and their prevention are not mentioned in the Millennium Development Goals (for example, indicators on tobacco use), which has hindered the securing of donor funding for NCDs – a serious omission, as NCDs cause 14 million premature deaths every year in LMICs. For an online discussion document on this issue by C3 Collaborating for Health, on which your comments would be welcome, click here >>

Christine Hancock, director of C3, said: ‘I am delighted that this important issue is at last being taken seriously by the UN. It is vital that all organisations unite over the next 18 months to ensure the success of the summit, as well as continuing to take practical action to combat the epidemic of chronic diseases.’

Many NGOs have been pressing for this level of serious engagement by the UN – notably the NCD alliance (made up of the World Heart Federation, International Diabetes Federation, International Union Against Cancer and the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease) and the WHO’s NCDnet – and there have been increasing signs that organisations such as the World Economic Forum are recognising the importance of the threat from chronic disease.

Source: Various, 14 May 2010.

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