November 2011

At a Glance

The UN Summit has undoubtedly been a watershed event for the diabetes and NCD community. In this newsletter, we provide early evidence of the ‘Summit Effect’ at national and regional levels, examples of how we are keeping diabetes and NCDs on the agenda of other global political meetings, and updates on our own advocacy efforts at the global level. We are proud to share with you our Advocacy Guide to the Political Declaration, the first of its kind. We hope it will be a useful tool for the diabetes community in turning Summit commitments into action at national and regional levels. Also with just over 2 weeks to go, we give you a flavour of what to expect at our World Diabetes Congress. Get ready to be inspired and energised for this new era of diabetes advocacy!

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Two Months after the Summit - Evidence of Impact

The impact of the Summit is already unfolding. Building on the various statements made by Member States in New York, governments have begun to prioritise NCDs and make voluntary commitments on prevention and control at the national level. Highlights include:

• South Korea pledged USD 4.5 million over the next 5 years for NCD prevention and control;
• Australia committed significant financial contributions for the global NCD response; with USD 700,000 committed to the WHO Secretariat to support the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control’s global implementation, AUSD 4 million to WHO for NCD action plans, and AUSD 25 million to aid Pacific island nations in tackling NCDs;
• The Indian government unveiled a national NCD programme, involving up to 26 interventions across the four diseases and risk factors. It aims to screen 150-200 million people for diabetes, cancer, CVD and stroke by March 2012.

A number of national and regional NCD forums and consultations have been held or are in the planning stages, to set priorities and continue momentum. These include:

• NCD Symposium of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) + 3 (Korea, Japan and China) in Beijing on November 13-14;
• Chinese National Conference on NCD Prevention and Control, December 9-10;
• European Commission reflection process on how to take forward Council Conclusions on NCDs in public health and healthcare systems.

And new local and regional NCD Alliances are continuing to be established. The most recent one is the Nepal NCD Network which was formed during a national workshop on NCDs.

Let us know what is happing in your country and region. We want to hear from you! unsummit@idf.org

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IDF Launches Advocacy Guide to the Political Declaration

Before the Summit we launched our Advocacy Toolkit to support Member Associations and the broader NGO community engage in the Summit process, and to secure strong outcomes for diabetes. Now, during diabetes awareness month, we have launched an Advocacy Guide to the Political Declaration for the post-Summit era. A valuable tool for national advocacy, the Guide provides the ‘what’ and ‘how’ to the Summit’s Political Declaration on NCD Prevention and Control. It aims to move the Declaration from commitments on paper to action on the ground. As well as detailing key issues for diabetes in the Declaration, it provides advice on how to use the Political Declaration to drive change for diabetes at the country and regional levels and outlines IDF’s framework for future diabetes advocacy.  We have produced this Guide so you can find out:

• How the Declaration was drafted and agreed
• What the Declaration says on key diabetes and NCD issues
• How civil society can get involved with implementing the Political Declaration
• How you can use the Declaration to accelerate national and regional progress on diabetes
• How we can build on the Declaration to create strong political leadership for diabetes and NCDs

Also look out for the resources section - it includes a table of government commitments to assist you in holding your government to account, a list of key events in 2012, and a list of useful resources. Read find the full Advocacy Guide.

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Going Blue for Diabetes!

On 14 November, the world celebrated World Diabetes Day (WDD), an official UN holiday. To mark this special day, the 5th edition of the IDF Diabetes Atlas was launched, delivering the latest figures on the spread of this silent epidemic. Millions of people affected by diabetes the world over lit monuments in blue, signed the petition, handed over copies of the Charter of Rights and Responsibilities to their health authorities and generally raised awareness for the disease. Staff from IDF have pledged to wear blue every Friday in November and joined the 27 other countries engaging in flashmob dancing this year. November is also National Diabetes Awareness Month in the USA and members of the US diabetes online community have been very active.

For a detailed view of all the exciting events which took place, please visit our website and Facebook page.

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Keeping Diabetes and NCDs on the Agenda

The UN Summit put diabetes and NCDs on the global agenda. We have the first ever global Political Declaration on NCDs as a result. But we now need to work together to keep diabetes in the spotlight. We need to ensure political leaders continue to discuss and prioritise diabetes, and strengthen ties with other health and development agendas. In the 2 months since the Summit, we have already made a start.

NCDs were a major theme of the World Conference on Social Determinants of Health convened by WHO on 19-21 October in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. IDF contributed to the public consultation that shaped the Conference, highlighting the clear linkages between the two agendas. The Conference brought together over 1,000 participants representing more than 125 Member States, and concluded with the adoption of the Rio Declaration. A number of commitments focus on NCDs, including taking forward the actions in the Political Declaration on NCDs. Read the Rio Declaration and the NCD Alliance statement.

On 28-30 November, Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) met for their annual meeting in Perth, Australia. Earlier in the year NCDs was the theme of the Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting in Geneva, and IDF President Jean Claude Mbanya gave the keynote speech. In Perth last week, the 54 Heads of Government and State discussed NCDs further and committed to accelerate implementation of the Political Declaration on NCDs. Read the CHOGM 2011 Communiqué.

In 2012, IDF and the NCD Alliance will continue to keep the pressure on world leaders. The Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development on 20-22 June will be the biggest development meeting of the year, and will influence discussions at the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) Review the following year. We must start preparing for Rio+20 now! Diabetes and NCDs must be included in all discussions of the future internationally agreed development goals.

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NCD Alliance Forward Planning Meeting, New York

On 11-12 November, IDF and the NCD Alliance convened a high-level NCD forward planning meeting in New York. The meeting brought together the major stakeholders in NCDs to review Summit outcomes and begin to define our vision and roadmap of action to the UN NCD Summit Review in 2014. Attendees included WHO Assistant Director General Dr Ala Alwan, representatives from PAHO, the World Bank, The Lancet NCD Action Group, World Economic Forum, and a number of key academic institutions. IDF President Jean Claude Mbanya and CEO Ann Keeling represented the diabetes community. The meeting was very fruitful, giving the space to share ideas and energise key stakeholders for the road ahead. Watch this space for outcomes of the meeting.

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Two weeks to go until World Diabetes Congress

IDF’s World Diabetes Congress is just two weeks away. Over 13,000 participants are expected, ranging from politicians, scientists and researchers, public health experts, healthcare providers, the private sector and people living with diabetes, will convene in Dubai on 4-8 December for the biggest meeting of the global diabetes community. Held every two years, our Congress is a timely opportunity to reflect on the outcomes of the Summit and strategise our next steps for Member Associations and our wider diaspora.

We have added a number of new dimensions to our Congress to maximize this opportunity. Firstly, we are holding the Global Diabetes Forum immediately before the Congress. This exclusive event will be the first time leaders from government, the private sector and civil society have a space to discuss translating Summit commitments into action for the millions of people with diabetes. The Forum will primarily focus on the practical role businesses can play, and will result in the Dubai Blueprint which will contain best practice examples and recommendations.   

We have also added a new programme stream to our Congress – Global Challenges in Health. Panels and interactive sessions will discuss the big issues in global health and development, and experts will share best practice in policy and programmes at the national, regional and global levels. The Congress will culminate in a lively, interactive discussion for all Congress participants called the Dubai Dialogue, which will pave the way for a roadmap of action for the global diabetes community in the post-Summit era.

More information about the Congress.

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Upcoming Events

• 29 November: OECD and Republic of Korea, 4th High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness, Busan, Republic of Korea
• 2 December: IDF Member Association Consultation, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
• 3 December: IDF Global Diabetes Forum, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
• 4-8 December: IDF World Diabetes Congress, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

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