Eleven South-East Asian countries are expected to adopt 10 targets to prevent and control noncommunicable diseases (NCD) by 2025. The Health Ministers will meet at the 66th Session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia in New Delhi.
The increase in NCDs is attributed to factors such as population ageing, rapid and unplanned urbanisation, negative effects of globalisation (such as trade and irresponsible marketing of unhealthy products), low literacy, and poverty. “Noncommunicable diseases exact a huge toll on national economies. NCDs disproportionately affect poor, impoverished families and are a growing burden on health systems,” said Dr Samlee Plianbangchang, WHO Regional Director for South-East Asia. “These 10 targets are ambitious goals and they demonstrate that governments are serious about reducing the disease burden from NCDs” he added.
The Regional Committee is expected to adopt a regional action plan for prevention and control of NCDs. The action plan is intended to provide a roadmap of actions for developing and implementing policies and programmes to reduce the burden of NCDs. It also provides a roadmap to achieve a 25 per cent reduction in deaths from cardiovascular diseases, cancers, diabetes, or chronic respiratory diseases by 2025. Implementation of the plan will be monitored through a set of indicators which are consistent with the global monitoring framework. Reports on progress in implementing the action plan will be submitted to the WHO Regional Committee sessions in 2016, 2018 and 2021.
The 10 targets to be achieved by 2025 are as follows:
- 25 per cent relative reduction in overall mortality from cardiovascular diseases, cancers, diabetes, or chronic respiratory diseases.
- 10 per cent relative reduction in the harmful use of alcohol.
- 30 per cent relative reduction in prevalence of current tobacco use in persons aged over 15 years.
- 10 per cent relative reduction in prevalence of insufficient physical activity.
- 30 per cent relative reduction in mean population intake of salt/sodium.
- 25 per cent reduction in prevalence of raised blood pressure.
- Halting the rise in obesity and diabetes.
- 50 per cent of eligible people receive drug therapy and counselling (including glycaemic control) to prevent heart attacks and strokes.
- 80 per cent availability of affordable basic technologies and essential medicines, including generics, required to treat major NCDs in both public and private facilities.
- 50 per cent relative reduction in the proportion of households using solid fuels as the primary cooking source.
EH News Bureau