Organizational Update

Most countries are likely to fail to meet global targets on tackling noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), according to the second Global Status Report on Noncommunicable Diseases 2014 released by the World Health Organization on January 19, 2015. ‘Attaining the nine global NCD targets; a shared responsibility’ is the theme of this global report. The report aims to inform Ministries of Health and all stakeholders of the progress made on targets set in 2013, 2 years after world leaders agreed to tackle this global health problem at a United Nations high-level meeting. In May 2013, the World Health Assembly adopted a global NCD action plan monitoring framework with 25 indicators and 9 voluntary global targets set for 2025.According to the latest statistics in the report, NCDs continue to be the leading cause of deaths worldwide and were responsible for 38 million of the world’s 56 million deaths in 2012. An estimated 17.5 million NCD deaths were caused by cardiovascular disease, including 6.7 million from strokes. Some 16 million of NCD deaths occurred in people …