Publications

Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) are leading cause of death worldwide, posing a major challenge to public health and hindering economic development. NCDs are a group of chronic diseases and conditions that result from a combination of genetic, metabolic, environmental and behavioural factors. The most prevalent NCDs - cardiovascular diseases (CVD), diabetes, cancers and chronic respiratory diseases (CRDs) - collectively represent over 80% of the global NCD burden. 

In the African Region, CVD has emerged as the leading cause of NCD deaths, followed by cancers, diabetes and CRDs. These four NCDs contribute significantly to mortality rates, with substantial regional variations. An estimated 1.6 million people between the ages of 30 and 70 die prematurely each year from one of the major NCDs, accounting for 63% of all NCD-related deaths. Cancers, CRDs, CVDs and diabetes account for over 70% of premature deaths. The drivers of NCD mortality in the WHO African Region are varied and multifaceted. Increased exposure to lifestyle risk factors, coupled with low awareness of these conditions, treatment options and risk factors at both individual and community levels, can prevent affected individuals from recognizing when and how to seek appropriate care. 

Structural drivers include limited access to health services, medications and technologies needed for the successful management of NCDs. Additionally, insufficient resources hinder the scaling up of NCD services across the Region. Addressing these structural challenges through targeted investments offers an opportunity to achieve significant progress in controlling NCDs. When evaluating progress across the African Region against key NCD control indicators, outcomes varied. Setting time-bound national targets based on WHO guidance has been fully achieved by 25 countries (53.2%). However, reliable cause-specific mortality data systems remain a major gap across the Region, with 44 countries (93.6%) not meeting standards. While almost half the countries in the Region have updated NCD action plans, many of these plans require further revision and enhancement to effectively address evolving challenges. 

In 2024, the Noncommunicable Diseases management programme continued to provide regional leadership and guidance in policy development and reform, coordinating with countries, other regional organizations and VI Noncommunicable diseases and mental health in the WHO African Region VII stakeholders to control and manage NCDs in the African Region. Furthermore, the Regional Office continued to provide technical support to Member States in the Region, facilitating the acceleration of key regional and global NCD frameworks and strategies. The major challenges to containing the NCD epidemic in the WHO African Region are limited political commitment, a narrow focus on the clinical management of NCDs, and a lack of appropriate data. The proposed public health response for 2025 will focus on accelerating national efforts, based on an understanding of NCD epidemiology, risk factors and the identified barriers and enablers in countries. This approach emphasizes prioritizing and scaling up the implementation of the most impactful and feasible interventions within the national context. Additionally, it underscores the importance of ensuring timely, reliable and sustained collection of national data on NCD risk factors, diseases and mortality for data-driven actions and to strengthen accountability. 

This report discusses the progress made for NCDs in the African Region in 2024, providing an overview of the current state in the Region, followed by a summary of WHO’s role in: (i) leadership, coordination and partnerships; (ii) development of technical, information and knowledge products; and (iii) technical support to Member States for each NCD of focus