Network Joins UNICEF in Publishing Report on Childhood Noncommunicable Diseases
The publication captures findings from a workshop held in Kathmandu with the participation of all eight countries in the UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia.
Sushil Chaudhary, who was diagnosed with sickle cell disease at age eight, receives the unwavering support of Lahani Tharu, his mother. Tharu has dedicated herself to caring for her son, spending countless days in a hospital in Lumbini Province, Nepal, for his blood transfusions and using her life’s savings to ensure his well-being. (Photo: ©UNICEF/2023/Upadhayay)
UNICEF and the Center for Integration Science in Global Health Equity at Brigham and Women’s Hospital—one of two co-secretariats of the NCDI Poverty Network—recently published a report based on a three-day workshop they held in Kathmandu, Nepal, in June.
The event, “Strategies to Address Severe Chronic Non-Communicable Diseases in Childhood, Adolescents and Young Adults: A Childhood NCD Learning Workshop,” convened 60 child health and noncommunicable disease policymakers, implementers, and technical and development partners from all eight countries in ROSA, the UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia. Joining delegates from those eight countries—Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka—were representatives from Cambodia.
During the workshop, participants shared their experiences and discussed challenges, opportunities, and strategies to address severe childhood-onset conditions that affect children, adolescents, and young adults in South Asia, particularly those from lower-income areas and those with limited access to health care services. Participants also discussed strategies for integrating these conditions into health system interventions and noncommunicable disease and child health policies in the region.
“When people think of noncommunicable diseases, they typically think of conditions that affect older people,” said Neil Gupta, senior director of policy for the NCDI Poverty Network and the Center for Integration Science. “This workshop was truly unique in that it brought a real childhood and adolescent focus to this topic—not only how to prevent children from developing NCDs, but also how to urgently address NCDs and injuries that are already affecting children at very early ages. It’s shocking that over three-quarters of deaths in school-aged children and adolescents in South Asia are due to NCDs and injuries, and it’s inspiring that these countries came together in the workshop to map out real solutions.”
The report, which captures the participants’ research and conclusions, is available as a downloadable PDF.