Philips today released its latest Fabric of Africa Trends Report called “Facing the Future: Tackling Non-Communicable Diseases in Africa”.

Launched at the Africa Healthcare Summit in London, the report says that the number of annual deaths from NCDs in Africa should rise by more than a quarter over the next 10 years, driven mainly by economic growth and connected lifestyle changes and behaviors.

The report discusses programs being conducted in a wide range of countries, including South Africa, Egypt and Uganda, and shows how the predicted rise in NCDs can potentially be detected earlier, halted, or even reversed through innovative solutions to overcome political, economic, clinical and technological barriers. 

Highlights of the report, which incorporates the results of a range of recent studies, include:

• Recommendations to overcome the negative effects of observed nutrition transition in South Africa. 

• Egypt is fighting diabetes in its country (the eighth highest prevalence of any country in the world) by promoting awareness through advocacy, providing workshops for health care professionals and assuming a crucial role to guide and inform other diabetes associations on the continent.

• Positive results for increasing role of community health workers in rural settings across the continent, to slow down the rise in breast cancer mortality. 

The report is commissioned as part of Philips’ ‘Fabric of Africa’ campaign, a collaborative campaign to drive public-private partnerships and to improve healthcare access across the African continent. 

Peter van de Ven, Vice President & General Manager, Philips Healthcare Africa, said: “In 2008, nearly three million African deaths were attributable to preventable or treatable NCDs. That figure will rise by more than 25 percent in the next decade. Addressing this alarming increase in NCDs doesn’t require huge investment; proven programs delivered locally and cost-effectively using relatively low-tech devices and techniques – are the keys to resolving this growing challenge. I am proud that Philips, with its extensive 100-year legacy in Africa is helping to lead the way by developing and supporting a wide range of programs that quickly make real differences in peoples’ lives”.

Dr. Eric Silfen, Chief Medical Officer at Philips Healthcare states “Let’s adopt this report as our manifesto to speed simple, community-supported solutions in the areas of greatest need. Let’s tackle NCDs with the same urgency as we would any other kind of epidemic. Let’s conclude our unfinished business and bring 21st century health and well-being to Africa right now”.