Basseterre, St. Kitts, September 30, 2014 (SKNIS): Combating Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD’s) is high on the agenda for the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis.
This was addressed at the General Debate of the 69th Session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, where Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hon. Patrice Nisbett pointed out how important health is to the country’s well-being.
“We (the Government) are convinced that a nation’s wealth lies in the health of its people; its productive sector,” stressed Minister Nisbett. “We continue to wrestle with high incidence of non- communicable diseases (NCD’s) in our and region.”
Minister Nisbett made a call for a ‘strong global response in combating the high incidence of NCD’s particularly in developing countries.’
At the 68th Session of The UN’s General Assembly last year, Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, the Rt. Hon Dr. Denzil Douglas made a similar call and stressed the need for the UN to keep in place, a practical strategy to address the high incidence of NCD’s, as it is becoming more strenuous on economies.
“The high incidence of NDC’s within the Caribbean places an increased burden on our open economies which are highly vulnerable to external shocks and natural disasters,” said Prime Minister Douglas. “As we focus strategically on the Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) and the post-2015 development agenda, we cannot lose sight of NCD and the real threat that they pose to the societies across the globe.”
In addressing the General Assembly, Minister Nisbett expressed how grateful the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis was, to see NCD’s mentioned in the post-2015 development agenda.
“Mr. President, my delegation is indeed pleased to see the inclusion of non-communicable diseases in the goals and targets for sustainable development as part of the post-2015 development agenda,” said Minister Nisbett. “Indeed we support the goals to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all, at all ages.”
St. Kitts and Nevis also “supports the target to reduce premature mortality from NCD’s by one-third, through prevention and treatment and promote mental health and well-being by the year 2030.”
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