Secretariat to host consultation on non-communicable diseases

As part of its priorities in health, the Social Transformation Programmes Division (STPD) of the Commonwealth Secretariat is organising a consultative meeting on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) as part of a wider dialogue with key partners in the global health and development community. Dr Sylvia Anie, Director of STPD, said: “This consultation will offer an excellent opportunity to engage with key experts and stakeholders as we prepare to chart the way for the next Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting in May 2011, the theme of which is NCDs. This is an extraordinary partnership between the Commonwealth Secretariat, the National Heart Forum and the Lancet towards addressing the increasing burden on NCDs.”

The meeting will take place on 9 November at Marlborough House in London, with representatives from Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Sierra Leone, South Africa, and Trinidad and Tobago expected to attend.

It will also include delegates from the World Health Organization (WHO), International Diabetes Foundation, International Union against Cancer and the National Heart Forum. Sir George Alleyne, former Director of the Pan American Health Association and UN Special Envoy for HIV and AIDS in the Caribbean will chair a session.

The consultation will be followed by the launch of the third Lancet series on Chronic Diseases and Development in London on 10 November. Organised by the National Heart Forum, in conjunction with the Lancet and the Department of Health, England, the event will draw together leading policy experts in global health and development, including the WHO, the World Bank and the Global Fund.

In his opening remarks, Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Ransford Smith will highlight the Commonwealth’s unique ability to contribute to agenda setting and to galvanise co-operation across its diverse 54-nation membership. “A strong and co-ordinated response is required from us all to turn the tide on this growing epidemic,” he will say.

The day-long launch aims to build support for chronic diseases to become part of the evolving global health and development agendas in the run-up to next September’s UN High Level Meeting on chronic diseases.

In November 2009, leaders at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Trinidad and Tobago endorsed a Commonwealth Statement on Action to Combat Non-Communicable Diseases. A Commonwealth Secretariat Road Map on Non-Communicable Diseases was accepted by Health Ministers in May 2010. It aims to identify objectives and to operationalise the CHOGM Statement.

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