By Jacob Ngwenya
People living with noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) united under the banner of Beat NCDs Zimbabwe will be joining the Global NCDs movement on 14-21 September 2023 for the Global Week for Action on NCDs which unites the NCD community every September, concentrating their combined efforts to help reduce the NCD burden globally and improve health equity for all.
On social media they are united with the hashtag #ActOnNCDs.This year, the campaign spotlights the call to close the care gap for people living with NCDs. The campaign calls on everyone, everywhere to take action and be an agent of change. From posting on social media, to contacting local politicians and policymakers, to organizing a health-promoting event for your community, no action is too small, no voice is insignificant.
The campaign theme for 2023 is “The moment for Caring”. “The brutal fact is that for many people around the world, the chances of surviving an NCD depend on their ability to pay for care out of their own pocket. With the UHC High-Level Meeting happening this September 2023, we are calling on governments to change this, to make bold commitments for people living with NCDs around the world.” – Katie Dain NCD Alliance CEO. In 2023, the Global Week for Action on NCDs will advocate for this inequity to end by putting the spotlight on the care gap for NCDs. We aim to catalyse fair and effective solutions to support every person, every family and every community affected by NCDs and make the cost for care and treatment affordable.
Heads of State and Governments will meet in September 2023 in New York to discuss UHC at the High-Level Meeting. This will be an opportunity to advance UHC policy and implementation in the lead up to 2030 and this very important world leaders high level political engagement runs concurrently with the Global Week for Action on NCDs.
As this crucial moment is fast approaching, Jacob Ngwenya Beat NCDs director on behalf of people living with NCDs said, “We call on governments and heads of state to uphold their commitments to Universal Health Coverage (UHC), ensuring that everyone has access to the healthcare that they need, without risk of financial hardship, and regardless of where they live or who they are”.
As people living with NCDs around the world and in Zimbabwe in particular, when we look at the economics of health, we see a story of inequity. World leaders have promised to ensure everyone has access to healthcare, regardless of ability to pay, by 2030 – this is known as Universal Health Coverage (UHC). We have one clear message for governments,ministers of finance and health, donors,international agencies, and the private sector: the moment for caring about people living with noncommunicable diseases(NCDs) is now.
Below is the calender for the daily themes during the Global Week for Action on NCDs
-Investments for caring – 14 September
– Caring: from prevention to palliation -15 September
– Joining efforts for development and health priorities – 18 September
– Considerate caring: engaging people living with NCDs – 19 September
– NCD care in Universal Health Coverage- 20 to 21 September
Jacob Ngwenya is a health policy entrepreneur with Beat NCDs Zimbabwe who has wealthy disability, HIV and noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) lived experience and dedicate his time and effort to creating an enabling environment for these vulnerable groups to help foster the principle of inclusion of people with lived experience in co-creation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies, programs and services that affect them
Tel: +263785837994 Email: beatncdszim.@gmail.com
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