Union Minister for Health and Sports Dr Myint Htwe, on 26 October, participated in the virtual meeting on Access to Sustainable NCDs (non-communicable diseases) Treatment and Care of the World Health Summit 2020 via videoconferencing.

During the virtual conference session, the Union Minister said that the mortality rate of non-communicable diseases was high across the world, including Myanmar. NCDs accounted for 62 per cent of all deaths in Myanmar, according to the Union Minister, who said that Myanmar is making significant efforts to prevent, manage and control non-communicable diseases.

According to the figure released by Myanmar’s Ministry of Health and Sports in 2018, the NCDs could increase premature deaths by 24 per cent. Cardiovascular diseases accounted for 25 per cent of all NCDs deaths in Myanmar in 2018; various cancers accounted for 13 per cent. The quality of life of any individual who suffers from NCDs will be reduced, and their families will experience financial burdens, the Union Minister said.

In Myanmar, 1,715 rural health departments and 7,317 rural health sub-departments are providing tests and treatment for diabetes and hypertension every Wednesday, according to the Union Minister. About 206,000 diabetes patients and almost 429,000 hypertension patients received medical treatment at the health departments. Myanmar has implemented the National Strategic Plan for Prevention and Control of NCDs in Myanmar (2017-2021), according to the Union Minister.

Myanmar has estimated that it will cost USD101 million for tests and treatments of NCDs for about 2 million people in the two-year period (2021 and 2022), and international organizations will provide USD25 million to Myanmar for a project for NCDs, said the Union Minister.

Myanmar’s NCDs project will focus on helping people reduce tobacco uses, avoid harmful uses of alcohol, live on a healthy diet, do workouts, and receive tests and treatment for cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and chronic respiratory diseases, according to the Union Minister.

The main speakers in the videoconference session were Myanmar’s Union Minister for Health and Sports Dr Myint Htwe, the Director of WHO’s Department of NCDs, the Chairperson of the Board of Managing Directors of Boehringer Ingelheim, the Commissioner for Social Affairs of African Union Commission, Rwanda’s Health Minister, Gambia’s Health Minister, and the Managing Director of the Defeat-NCD Partnership of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research. Prime Ministers, Health Ministers, Ambassadors, UN organizations, WHO officials, ADB officials, the World Bank officials, EU officials, experts and researchers from international universities, and officials from pharmaceutical industry also participated in the virtual meeting.—MNA 

(Translated by Maung Maung Swe)