Category: CARPHA

Barbados raises mandate for action on NCDs

Michelle Nurse Leave a comment
(Photo via Barbados Government Information Service)

The Permanent Mission of Barbados to the Organisation of American States (OAS) is leading the process to secure an ambitious political mandate for the response to non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the Americas.

At a joint session of the OAS Permanent Council and the Inter-American Council for Integral Development, which was convened in Washington, on March 19, at the request of the Permanent Mission of Barbados, the attendees examined presentations by the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) on the increasing social and economic burden of NCDs on countries in the hemisphere.

Chairman of the Healthy Caribbean Coalition, Sir Trevor Hassell, also briefed Member States on the extent and impact of NCDs in the Caribbean.  He submitted that the sub-region was disproportionately impacted by the diseases.

In his statement to the joint session, Barbados’ Permanent Representative to the OAS, Ambassador Selwin Hart in describing the economic impact of NCDs reasoned that significant resources were being directed towards costly secondary and tertiary treatment for the epidemic.

Read more at: Barbados Government Information Service

CROSQ Meeting of Council of Directors underway in Barbados

Michelle Nurse Leave a comment
Business and Commerce Minister of Barbados, the Hon. Donville Inniss addressing the meeting

International and regional organisations this morning began a three-day meeting of the Council of Directors of the CARICOM Regional Organisation for Standards & Quality (CROSQ)  at the Accra Beach Resort, Bridgetown, Barbados.

During the first two days, the meeting will discuss how standardisation, trade and trade facilitation, and international health matters, among other issues, fit into the quality agenda of the region. The third day is a closed meeting exclusive to the directors to look at the direction and development of quality infrastructure for the year ahead.

FAO Director-General calls for collaboration to combat malnutrition, obesity

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Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), José Graziano da Silva, has called for a multi-sectoral approach in combating malnutrition and obesity, which are on the rise in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).

Speaking on day two of the FAO’s 35th Regional Conference for the LAC at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St. James on Tuesday (March 6), Mr. da Silva said there is a “disturbing change”, which has resulted in the prevalence of malnourished people increasing in countries of the Caribbean, South and Central American subregions.

“The prevalence of malnourished people increased in 2016. This includes here in Latin America and the Caribbean, where the numbers went up from 20 million to 42.2 million. So now it is time to take stock of the promise made, then find the reasons for this setback and draw conclusions on how to move forward to make sure that the numbers go down,” he said.

Read more at: Jamaica Information Service