The second Global NCD Alliance Forum, which takes place December 9-11, 2017 in Sharjah, will be the setting for two days of workshops and plenary sessions that examine the latest efforts to reduce the worldwide burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Held under the theme ‘Stepping up the Pace for NCDs: Making 2018 count,’ the forum aims to develop new strategies to prevent and curtail the lifestyle diseases that kill 40 million people each year – a figure equivalent to 70% of all deaths globally.
Hosted by the Friends of Cancer Patients (FoCP), a non-profit organisation dedicated to fighting cancer and supporting patients and their families, and the NCD Alliance, the forum is being held under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, wife of the Ruler of Sharjah, Founder and Patron of FoCP, International Ambassador for the World Cancer Declaration of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) and International Ambassador for Childhood Cancer for UICC.
Following on from the highly successful inaugural event, which took place in November 2015, the forum is being held with the aim of strengthening alliances and forging new partnerships. More than 300 medical experts, health care policy makers and NCD Alliance stakeholders and members of civil society will be convening at the event to assess and evaluate the current actions on minimising the prevalence of NCDs and to discuss new strategies that can be implemented to further their reduction.
“Each year, 15 million people between the ages of 30 and 69 years die from a non-communicable disease, with cardiovascular diseases the forming the majority, followed by cancers, then respiratory diseases, then diabetes. These four groups account for over 80% of all premature NCD deaths. The second Global NCD Alliance Forum will assess the efficacy of existing detection, and screening of NCDs and examine ways we can improve on the current situation. The forum aims to result in the strengthening of existing alliances and the creation of new partnerships in the crucial fight against lifestyle diseases,” said Dr Sawsan Al Madhi, Director General of FoCP.
The forum will include three streams discussing different aspects of NCDs, one taking place over each of the event’s three days. Day one will host the first stream ‘Advocating for NCD Prevention and Control’ and its five workshops; Making a Case for Investment and Financing for NCD Prevention and Control; Improving NCD Access and Achieving Universal Health Coverage for All; Joining Forces to Tackle the Determinants of NCD; Promoting the Meaningful Involvement of People Living with NCDs and Driving National Planning on NCDs.
The second day of the forum will see stream two under the theme ‘Breaking Down Silos and Building Synergies in the SDG Era.’ The stream’s five workshops comprise: Integrating Efforts for NCDs and Women’s and Children’s Health; Addressing NCDs as a Barrier to Poverty Reduction and Development; Using the Law to Safeguard Health and Reduce NCDs; Human and Planetary Health: At the Intersection of NCDs; Urbanisation and Climate Change and Ensuring Sustainable Healthy Diets for All.
The third day stream on the third day is ‘Sharing Tools and Strategies for NCD Advocacy and Mobilisation,’ with its five workshops being: Through the Magnifying Glass: Leveraging Accountability Efforts in NCDs; Using Research to Advance Evidence-based Advocacy and Policymaking; for the Long Haul: Ensuring the Sustainability of NCD Alliances; Promoting the Best Buys for NCDs: Making the Case and Promoting a Multisectoral Approach to NCDs through Workplace Wellness.
“The second Global NCD Alliance Forum continues on from the extremely successful inaugural event in 2015, which was conceived in line with the vision of His Royal Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council Ruler of Sharjah. This aims to see Sharjah at the forefront of initiatives to alleviating the impact of NCDs through three main pillars; establishing a hub in Sharjah to follow up on the forum’s outcomes; refocusing on NCDs in the Africa region and putting research as the cornerstone to establishing a more holistic approach to NCD advocacy,” added Al Madhi.
The first Global NCD Alliance Forum culminated with the Sharjah Declaration on NCDs, which calls on governments to champion NCD prevention by implementing goals, promoting interventions, allocating resources and establishing robust and transparent monitoring systems. It advocates including the voices of those affected by NCDs in policy development and calls on the United Nations to integrate NCDs into broader human rights, health and development policies, improve tracking of resources for NCDs and provide technical support to governments in low and middle income countries to achieve agreed NCD goals.
