Ms Aradhana Patnaik, Additional Secretary and Mission Director, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India
Officials and dignitaries from our Member States
Partners, colleagues and friends
Good morning to you all.
On behalf of WHO, I welcome all distinguished delegates and participants to this important regional workshop on Prioritizing NCD Prevention and Control in South-East Asia.
My thanks to the Government of India and the Government of Rajasthan for hosting us here in historic Jaipur.
This workshop comes at an important moment.
Two weeks ago, the 78th Session of the Regional Committee deliberated on two major agenda items:
The Regional Strategic Framework for combating smokeless tobacco, novel nicotine products, and areca nut; and
SEAHEARTS – our landmark initiative for cardiovascular disease, combining risk factor reduction with strengthening of hypertension and diabetes management.
NCD prevention and control is also a global priority- last month, the UN General Assembly held its Fourth High-Level Meeting on NCDs and Mental Health.
NCDs remain one of the greatest public health and development challenges of our time.
In our region alone, they were the cause of over 9 million deaths in 2021, half of them premature. Cardiovascular diseases and cancer account for the highest proportion of these premature deaths—49% and 66% respectively.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Target 3.4 of the Sustainable Development Goals commits the world to reduce premature mortality from NCDs by one-third by 2030.
Unfortunately, according to the Global Health Estimates 2021, we are not on track.
In our region, premature NCD mortality has remained stubbornly high since 2000, putting us at serious risk of missing the target.
It is clear that we urgently need to move from strategy to action.
We must accelerate actions on two important fronts:
First, by implementing cost-effective policy, fiscal and regulatory measures to reduce key risk factors for NCDs
Second, by strengthening primary health care to deliver NCD services, with a focus on good patient outcomes.
The extended and expanded SEAHEARTS Milestones 2030, endorsed by the Regional Committee earlier this month, is a roadmap for our region for this acceleration. I congratulate our Member States for this ambitious, yet achievable, commitment.
This workshop is an important step in fulfilling our mandate to technically support our countries —by discussing challenges and formulating national roadmaps to translate WHO technical packages into actionable steps to achieve these 2030 milestones.
You will also review the implementation progress of the Regional Strategy for Comprehensive Cancer Prevention and Management (2024–2030) and will support Member States in designing national priority actions.
Ladies and gentlemen,
This is our moment to learn from one another, to inspire each other, and to turn strategy into action.
WHO stands firmly with you, and I wish you a productive and successful workshop.
Thank you.