National Commission Updates

After several years of hard work, members of the Nigeria NCDI Poverty Commission have published their final Phase 1 report.

The Benin NCDI Poverty Commission has published its final Phase 1 report.

The NCDI Poverty Commission of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has published its final Phase 1 report.

The first International Conference on PEN-Plus in Africa provided a platform for health experts, policymakers, civil society organization representatives, donors, people living with noncommunicable diseases, and community advocates to expedite political and financial backing for PEN-Plus.

The Uganda Ministry of Health, the local government of the Kumi District, and the Uganda Initiative for Integrated Management of Noncommunicable Diseases hosted a celebration of the launch of PEN-Plus in Uganda on 23 November.

PEN-Plus partners and stakeholders met in Addis Ababa on October 19 to discuss Ethiopia’s national scaleup of PEN-Plus. This scaleup will expand the accessibility and availability of quality noncommunicable disease care at the country’s primary hospital level.

The NCDI Poverty Commission of the Democratic Republic of the Congo convened in late October to review noncommunicable disease data as part of a priority-setting meeting.

In August, the Benin NCDI Poverty Commission convened at the Ministry of Health in Haie-Vive to review NCDI data for an initial situation analysis. The goal of the three-day workshop was to establish a framework to outline the prioritization of needs and identify appropriate interventions.

The Center for Integration Science in Global Health Equity participated in an Africa CDC/African Union workshop, “Non-Communicable Diseases, Injuries, and Mental Health Surveillance: Situational Analysis and Peer Learning,” in July 2023 in Ghana.

In May, the NCDI Poverty Network, in partnership with the Rwanda Ministry of Health and with support from Team Heart, launched a national Cardiac Technical Working Group.

In May, eight PEN-Plus providers in Zimbabwe received initial training in performing and interpreting echocardiograms. Those eight providers—along with seven others—were also trained in managing heart failure.

Members of the Burkina Faso NCDI Poverty Commission met at the Ministry of Health offices in Ouagadougou in early May to review national NCDI data as part of an initial situation analysis.

This spring, the Ministry of Health of Rwanda offered two weeks of practical training for 24 nurses and doctors from a dozen PEN-Plus district hospitals. The training—provided in partnership with the Network, Team Heart, and Partners In Health Rwanda—focused on the skills needed to diagnose and treat heart failure in rural district hospitals.

Members of the Cameroon NCDI Poverty Commission met in Yaounde on May 10 to review the results of their situation analysis and priority-setting work on the country’s noncommunicable disease burden. Attending were leaders and representatives of both the Ministry of Health and the country office of the World Health Organization.

The Ghana NCDI Poverty Commission held its kickoff meeting on 5 October 2022 at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, Ghana.

Leading NCDI policy makers, researchers, care providers, and advocates, including the Minister of Health, His Excellency Dr. Armindo Tiago, and Dr. Orlando António Quilambo, Rector of Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (UEM), convened in Maputo on 27 October for the launch of the Mozambique Co-Secretariat and Southern Africa Regional Hub of the NCDI Poverty Network, which will be based at UEM.