Conference abstract
An analysis of the landscape of non-communicable diseases prevention policies in Cameroon
Pan African Medical Journal - Conference Proceedings. 2023:17(100).04
Jun 2023.
doi: 10.11604/pamj-cp.2023.17.100.1742
Archived on: 04 Jun 2023
Contact the corresponding author
Keywords: Best buys, public policy, NCD prevention, Cameroon
Plenary
An analysis of the landscape of non-communicable diseases prevention policies in Cameroon
Clarisse Mapa-Tassou1,2,&, Felix Assah1,3, Zakariaou Njoumemi3, Eugene Sobngwi3, Jean Claude Mbanya1,3
1Health of Populations in Transition Research Group (HoPiT), University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon, 2Departement de Santé Publique, Faculté de Médecine et de Sciences Pharmaceutiques, Université de Dschang, Dschang, Cameroun, 3Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé 1, Yaoundé, Cameroun
&Corresponding author
Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) currently constitute a serious threat to health worldwide, with the situation expected to worsen if concerted actions are not urgently taken. In Cameroon, there is an increase in mortality attributable to NCDs, from 31% in 2012 to 42% in 2019. The impact of NCDs is already struggling with the burden of communicable diseases ranging from losses in economic productivity to the diversion of resources towards managing these conditions. For more than three decades, there has been an increase in global advocacy and policy efforts to prioritize and address NCDs. In that vein, several strategies have been proposed to deal with the NCD problem.
In 2013, the World Health Organization Global Action Plan emphasized the need for member countries to develop National NCD prevention policies and embrace multi-sectoral action in implementing preventive interventions, known as best buy interventions, and proposes the use of multi-sectoral approaches to engage the public, private, and non-profit sectors to implement these best buys. These best buys are population-based interventions addressing the four NCD risk factors – tobacco use, harmful use of alcohol, unhealthy diet, and physical inactivity; also known as “best buys” –These interventions are a set of evidence-based interventions the WHO identified as highly cost-effective, feasible and appropriate to implement within the constraints of the local LMIC health systems. Twelve years after this, what is the level of development of these best buys in Cameroon?
There is no national integrated strategic plan for the prevention and control of NCDs. Nevertheless, individual policies were formulated to address some NCD risk factors. There address best buys for tobacco use, harmful use of alcohol, and physical inactivity, but no policy for unhealthy diets. Tobacco Best buy-policies addressed the creation of smoke-free zones, warnings on tobacco products, a ban on tobacco advertising, and tax increases. Alcohol policies addressed restrictions on alcohol access, tax increases, and alcohol advertising. The physical activity policy addressed awareness through mass media. To address unhealthy diets, private interventions are done for salt reduction and trans-fats elimination.
The development of NCD prevention policies in Cameroon and the use of MSA have some gaps: the absence of a national NCD prevention position, and the lack of a comprehensive and integrated NCD prevention policy. the absence of a national platform for the prevention and control of NCDs, and an under-prioritization of NCDs/low resource allocation.
An analysis of the landscape of non-communicable diseases prevention policies in Cameroon
Clarisse Mapa-Tassou1,2,&, Felix Assah1,3, Zakariaou Njoumemi3, Eugene Sobngwi3, Jean Claude Mbanya1,3
1Health of Populations in Transition Research Group (HoPiT), University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon, 2Departement de Santé Publique, Faculté de Médecine et de Sciences Pharmaceutiques, Université de Dschang, Dschang, Cameroun, 3Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé 1, Yaoundé, Cameroun
&Corresponding author
Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) currently constitute a serious threat to health worldwide, with the situation expected to worsen if concerted actions are not urgently taken. In Cameroon, there is an increase in mortality attributable to NCDs, from 31% in 2012 to 42% in 2019. The impact of NCDs is already struggling with the burden of communicable diseases ranging from losses in economic productivity to the diversion of resources towards managing these conditions. For more than three decades, there has been an increase in global advocacy and policy efforts to prioritize and address NCDs. In that vein, several strategies have been proposed to deal with the NCD problem.
In 2013, the World Health Organization Global Action Plan emphasized the need for member countries to develop National NCD prevention policies and embrace multi-sectoral action in implementing preventive interventions, known as best buy interventions, and proposes the use of multi-sectoral approaches to engage the public, private, and non-profit sectors to implement these best buys. These best buys are population-based interventions addressing the four NCD risk factors – tobacco use, harmful use of alcohol, unhealthy diet, and physical inactivity; also known as “best buys” –These interventions are a set of evidence-based interventions the WHO identified as highly cost-effective, feasible and appropriate to implement within the constraints of the local LMIC health systems. Twelve years after this, what is the level of development of these best buys in Cameroon?
There is no national integrated strategic plan for the prevention and control of NCDs. Nevertheless, individual policies were formulated to address some NCD risk factors. There address best buys for tobacco use, harmful use of alcohol, and physical inactivity, but no policy for unhealthy diets. Tobacco Best buy-policies addressed the creation of smoke-free zones, warnings on tobacco products, a ban on tobacco advertising, and tax increases. Alcohol policies addressed restrictions on alcohol access, tax increases, and alcohol advertising. The physical activity policy addressed awareness through mass media. To address unhealthy diets, private interventions are done for salt reduction and trans-fats elimination.
The development of NCD prevention policies in Cameroon and the use of MSA have some gaps: the absence of a national NCD prevention position, and the lack of a comprehensive and integrated NCD prevention policy. the absence of a national platform for the prevention and control of NCDs, and an under-prioritization of NCDs/low resource allocation.
