NIHR officials and other representatives from Burkina Faso and Niger in a pose with the Minister of Health
The Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, yesterday said non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are increasing globally and currently the leading cause of deaths.
“These conditions are mostly due to modifiable risk factors which include tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, harmful use of alcohol and air pollution,” he disclosed.
He stated that, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), heart diseases, stroke, cancers, diabetes and respiratory diseases now outnumber infectious diseases as the top killers globally.
Speaking at the NIHR Global Health Research Centre for NCDs West Africa, (STOP NCD) Award in Accra yesterday, he said a scientific approach by the sub-region is required to improve the health and well-being of the population in West Africa.
Dr. Sylvia Anie, Senior Programmes Manager, National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) UK, said £10 million in funding has been awarded to fight non-communicable diseases in West Africa.
She said, NIHR in partnership with the United Kingdom and the Department of Health and Social Care, UK, have scaled up efforts to combat these NCDs in Ghana, Burkina Faso and Niger.
She further said the centre would also develop the skills of local research and clinicians and would run a PhD and master’s programme to provide formal training for students in all three countries.
“NIHR Global Health Research Centres will provide a sustainable platform for high-quality applied health research in low-and low middle-income countries (LMIC),” she stated.
By Hudda Bala Abdul Manan