Chronic Disease Brief For Africa (June 2018) By Dara Oloyede

• Nigeria: Verve Encourages Users to Exercise

• Malawi: First Lady Launches Nutrition Pollicy to Combat NCDs

• Tanzania: Taking the Strategic Plan a Step Further 

• Nigeria: 5.5% of Nigerians are Suffering from Diabetes

• Kenya: Hivos East Africa Launches Sustainable Food Project

 

Nigeria: Verve Encourages Users to Exercise 

Verve International, a Pan-African payment card company, has joined the fight to reduce Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs). They launched an event called “Verve Life 2.0” in Lagos to engage people to participate in fitness activities. This is the second year of this event and over 5,000 people registered. The focus of this event was to encourage people to stop making excuses about not exercising. Verve brought together fitness enthusiasts, people in the entertainment industry and other stakeholders for this event. The CEO, Mitchelle Elegbe, said that at Verve, they care about the wellbeing and health status of Nigerians, and that exercise can be used to tackle NCDs (Ifijeh, 2018). 

For more information check out this article at thisdaylive.com: Verve Champions fight against non-communicable diseases, holds fitness session

To learn more about this event visit: http://thevervelife.ng/new/

Malawi: First Lady Launches Nutrition Policy to Combat NCDs

The first lady Madame Gertrude Mutharika launched the 2018-2022 National Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Policy and Strategic Plan and the opening of the International Food and Nutrition Research Dissemination Conference in June. The focus of this policy is to direct attention to nutrition programming and implement a national response to address malnutrition. The first lady said that Malawi has made significant improvements in regards to nutrition, however stunting levels still remains high. This policy is also meant to serve as a guide for national nutrition stakeholders such as the government, faith based organizations, academia, as well as the private and other organizations (Kapulula, 2018). 

For more information check out this article at allafrica.com: Malawi: First Lady Launches Nutrition Policy - Overweight, Obesity Contributing to NCDs

Tanzania: Taking the Strategic Plan a Step Further 

The Tanzanian Ministry of Health initiated a plan to tackle non-communicable diseases with the launch of the 2016-2020 Second National Strategic Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of the NCDs. This plan was implemented in response to the growing burden of NCDs, which accounted for 27% of deaths in Tanzania. The Minister of Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children, Ms. Ummy Mwalimu, said that they have worked to implement good policies against NCDs, however, the challenge now is increasing community awareness about these issues. It is commonly believed that people in the urban areas are more affected by NCDs by people in the rural areas, however, several studies are showing that NCDs are increasingly affecting rural areas (Buguzi, 2018). 

For more information check out this article at thecitizen.co.tz: Tackling NCDs: Tanzania faces tough journey

Nigeria: 5.5% of Nigerians are Suffering from Diabetes 

The International Diabetes Foundation (IDF) and Global Medical Research and Development Organization (GMRDO) found that 5.5% of Nigerians have diabetes. Many people do not know they have diabetes until they have a stroke or collapse. The IDF and GMRDO organized a three-day Diabetes Awareness workshop at Novena University, located in Ogume, Delta State. Various stakeholders, such as health professionals, public health staff, and students, discussed diabetes management, and strategies to encourage Nigerians to be more physically active and eat healthier food (Akuopha, 2018). 

For more information check out this article at vanguard.com: Over 5.5 per cent Nigerians suffering from diabetes – researchers

Kenya: Hivos East Africa Launches Sustainable Food Project

Hivos is an international organization dedicated to finding solutions to global issues. In order to encourage nutrition for all, Hivos East Africa is launching a project in Nakuru County to increase sustainable diets. The name of this Hivos project is ‘Sustainable Diets for All’. The goal of this project is to influence the policy and the practice of various institutions in order to promote sustainable diets for all. This program aims to make sure that the county has enough nutrient-rich food, and also that it is also affordable and accessible to consumers who are low-income.This program will also work with other organizations to increase their capacity to influence policy and practices related to promoting sustainable diets. 

For more information check out this article at the nation.co.ke: Hivos EA to launch sustainable diets project in Nakuru County

To learn more about the work Hivos does check out their website: https://east-africa.hivos.org 

 

Dara Oloyede is the African News Correspondent for Engage Africa Foundation. She has a Masters of Public Health in Maternal and Child Health and Program Management. During her free time she likes to read books, spend time with friends, go to the movies, concerts, as well as events that celebrate different cultures. 

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