The World Health Assembly has adopted an implementation roadmap to accelerate national responses to the urgent and growing burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), such as cancers, diabetes, heart and lung diseases and its risk factors.
The global implementation of actions to prevent and control NCDs over the past two decades has been insufficient to reduce their impact as the world's biggest killers. The world is off track to achieve SDG target 3.4, to reduce premature deaths from NCDs, and no country is achieving all nine voluntary targets set out in the Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of NCDs 2013-2030.
There is also lack of progress for NCD risk factors, except for tobacco, over the past decade. There is an underinvestment in health systems to respond to NCDs both during and beyond the COVID-19 and PHC and the Health System strengthening has not kept up with the needs of NCDs. This is also reflected in the lack of progress. Since 2000, in the NCD service coverage domain of WHO’s Tracking Universal Health Coverage: 2021 Global monitoring report.
Overcoming persistent barriers to save more lives for people living with NCDs
The roadmap identifies several at country level and to achieve the NCD Global Action Plan targets, as well as SDG targets 3.4 and 3.8.
The implementation roadmap sets three strategic directions, focusing on the need to:
- Accelerate national responses based on the understanding of NCDs epidemiology and risk factors and the identified barriers and enablers in countries
- Prioritize and scale up the implementation of most impactful and feasible interventions in the national context
- Ensure timely, reliable and sustained national data on NCD risk factors, diseases and mortality for data driven actions and to strengthen accountability.
Investing in NCDs has a high return for both health and economic benefits, while financial protection is needed to avoid financial hardship from out-of-pocket payments. The strengthening of NCD prevention and control in primary health care, including NCDs in universal health coverage (UHC) benefit packages, and building back better with innovation and implementation research, are also aligned to DG new priorities.
Recommending actions for key partners
The decision recommends actions for Member States, international partners, and the WHO Secretariat to take forward.
Together, these actions will accelerate global outcomes. “The implementation roadmap is a critical tool to empower Member States in adopting the most impactful and feasible NCD interventions for their populations and save millions of lives”, said Dr Bente Mikkelsen, Director for Noncommunicable Diseases, World Health Organization.
Member States are recommended to identify the barriers and opportunities for scaling up the national NCD response, including to strengthen national monitoring and surveillance, research and multi-stakeholder responses. International partners are recommended to assist and support in the development of the implementation road map at all levels.
The WHO Secretariat will now take forward several actions, including updating very cost-effective and affordable interventions (previously known as the ‘best buys’), developing a data and web-based simulation tool, and developing guidance on pursuing meaningful multi-stakeholder collaboration, including meaningful engagement of people living with NCDs and mental health conditions, to advance national NCD responses.