Microsoft Word Report on who global Forum on ncds final 19 August 2011. doc

 

 

Page 18 of 43 

Dr Chan confirmed that the Forum was a 'groundbreaking' meeting, and that differences of 

views are welcome and expected. She finished with three key points.  First, that effective 

action will require "a social movement" and institutions that can use a “whole of government 

and whole of society approach" to deliver transformative change.  She noted the importance 

of educating girls and providing women with the resources they need to keep their families 

well.  

 

Second, Dr Chan urged participants to support integrated community-based, people-

centered primary health care services for health promotion, prevention, early detection and 

treatment. She emphasized the potential for addressing diabetes and access to effective 

medicines as an 'early win' and referred to conversations she is having with a range of 

stakeholders to take this forward. 

 

Finally, the Director-General emphasized the importance of institutions playing their roles – 

including governments, to civil society, the private sector and the media.  Her final comment 

was to underscore breastfeeding as a key to starting children off on the right track in life. 

 

 

 

X. C

ONCLUSION

 

 

The WHO Global Forum assembled over 300 participants from a variety of organizations 

and perspectives on NCD issues including prevention, disease control, advocacy, as well as 

those with a broader development interest. 

 

Participants were keen to share their perspectives and to contribute to the development of 

the global response to NCDs, recognizing they all have a significant role to play in future 

implementation of and advocacy for NCDs.  They all wish to be part of the solution.  

 

As the first such event, the Forum successfully highlighted many areas of consensus and 

joint action, as well as those where divergent views remain.  There was clear agreement that 

NCDs are 'everybody's problem' and require concerted action: collaborative working 

arrangements need to be identified to enable this.  While there is a clear need for 

multisectoral action, with whole of society and whole of government responses, this is 

challenging given different and competing agendas amongst government ministries. 

 

Communities need to be engaged, and this will require improved strategic communication, 

including through the use of social media, to inform about the burden of NCDs, position it 

as a key issue, as well as to communicate to local communities what they can do. 

 

Challenges also remain in finding ways to enable the various stakeholders to work 

collaboratively on a national/regional basis in the long term and in unison with national 

plans. This will require trust to be built among stakeholders and with the public, an essential 

prerequisite to broader and more productive collaboration.   Not surprisingly, there continue 

to be differing views on how and when the private sector should be engaged, for example in 

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infant and young child nutrition, as well as the appropriate balance between voluntary self-

regulation and government regulation. 

 

Challenges of leadership were also identified and a number of questions remain that need to 

be considered in the build-up to the high-level meeting: 

−

 

How can political will be galvanized so that the different government sectors scale 

up their response both individually and collectively? 

−

 

How can NGOs rise collectively to the challenge of NCDs and generate the social 

mobilization needed to support political action? 

−

 

Will the private sector, including industries that need to change what they current do, 

act decisively?  

−

 

Can we collectively create the environment that will support the public to 'choose' 

healthier lifestyles and products? 

 

Forum participants indentified a number of important outcomes from the September high-

level meeting that would help to move NCD prevention and control forward 

 

−

 

There was broad agreement that NCD prevention and control is critical to national 

development (health, social and economic) and effective development cannot occur 

without addressing NCDs.  

−

 

The ability to measure and monitor programmes and targets for NCD prevention 

and control is critical, and should be a focus for discussion. Better epidemiological 

surveillance of NCDs is critical to demonstrate the extent of the problem and 

empower government action based on evidence and to monitor progress. 

−

 

Health systems strengthening, including adequate and well-trained supply of health 

worker, should focus on integration across disease areas and particularly on 

community-based primary health care. 

−

 

Implementing the agreed 'best buys', e.g. raising taxes on tobacco and alcohol are 

key opportunities to reduce risk factors and, potentially, generate revenue that can 

be used to tackle NCDs: both are in line with FCTC and WHO recommendations.  

There is very good evidence that they have an effect on reducing consumption of 

tobacco and harmful consumption of alcohol. 

−

 

Appropriate incentives are an important strategy for advancing action to prevent 

and control NCDs by the public (healthy choices), health professionals, and the 

private sector. 

−

 

Country-specific implementation research is needed yield timely evidence on how to 

successfully implement the known 'best buys". Ensuring rapid uptake of evidence 

into policy is key to success in advancing NCDs.  

 

Finally, specific commitments were made by many at the Forum to help scale up both 

national and global action to prevent and control NCDs.  Many NGOs committed to 

actively supporting NCD prevention and control interventions, as well as developing a social 

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