Dignitaries at the event
THE DEPUTY Minister Of Health, Alexander Akwesi Acquah, has revealed that a survey by the World Health Organisation (WHO) indicates that non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are the primary cause of death and disabilities worldwide, killing 41 million people each year.
According to him, the majority of 77% of the global NCD deaths occur in low-and middle-income countries, including Ghana.
“Statistically, evidence suggests that, almost half of all NCD deaths are attributed to cardiovascular diseases,” he added.
He said this at the Ghana Hearth Initiative closing event and the AYA Integrated Healthcare Initiative Launching event which took place at the Labadi Beach Hotel, Accra.
Mr. Acquah stressed that, the support and funding for NCDs have been slow globally, despite the increasing importance of NCDs including cardiovascular diseases.
He said the World Health Organization estimated the global financing for NCD at less than 2% of health funding, meanwhile, the Sustainable development Goal (SDG) seeks to break the conversation on NCDs.
He disclosed that, Ghana is fully committed to pursuing the SDG target on SCDs, hence, through this pursuit, the Ministry launched its NCD policy and Strategic Plan for the prevention and control of NCDs 2022-2026 and conveyed the National Strategic Dialogue on NCDs in Ghana in 2022.
“The Ghana Health Initiative serves as an example of how formidable stakeholders’ engagement can help address global health challenges such as cardiovascular disease in Ghana,” he said.
“We are confident that the AYA integrated Healthcare Initiative can strengthen our health care system to better serve our people and tackle the growing burden of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes type 2,” Dr. Acquah indicated.
He assured that, the ministry of Health and its agencies will continue to support the AYA initiative for the benefits of all Ghanaians.
The Head of Operations, GIZ International Service, Siegfried Leffler, indicated that the Ghana Heart initiative, a system-strengthening project which has benefited millions of Ghanaian patients, was fully funded by a private sector partner, Bayer AG.
According to him, the relentless trust and partnership from Bayer, and the strong leadership of the Ministry of Health as well as the Ghana Health Service, and the dedication of numerous Ghanaian experts, enabled the project to extend beyond its initial pilot phase into four subsequent phases.
The journey of the project he said, has achieved key milestones such as the launch of the Cardiovascular Disease Guidelines in 2022 and has also weathered significant challenges, particularly, the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said the AYA Integrated Healthcare is “a prime example of how private sector and public institutions collaborate to tackle global health challenges, specifically, non-communicable diseases.
Mr. Leffler explained that, the name “AYA” is derive from the Adinkra symbol which represents, resilience, strength, support and values that will promote the initiative.
“At GIZ, we look forward to continuing this partnership with the Ghanaian government and private sector partners because I am confident this initiative will significantly impact health outcomes in Ghana,” he said.
BY Janet Odei Amponsah