23 January 2015 - The Philippine Permanent Representative to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, Ambassador Cecilia Rebong, 
addressed the member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) during the latter’s launch of its second Global Report on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).
The report aims to provide guidance on how Ministries of Health can set national NCD targets, and lead the development and implementation of policies and interventions to attain the nine global targets to be achieved by 2025. The goals include: 25% reduction in mortality from NCDs; 30% reduction in prevalence of tobacco smoking; 10% reduction of insufficient physical activity; 10% reduction in alcohol; 30% reduction in intake of salt; 25% reduction in the prevalence of raised blood pressure; halt the rise of diabetes and obesity; 80% availability of basic technologies and medicines to treat NCDs; and, at least 50% eligible people to receive drug therapy to prevent heart attacks.
NCDs are the leading cause of death in the world. It affects all countries. In the Philippines, it is responsible for two-thirds of total deaths with heart disease and stroke as the leading cause of mortality.
“The fact that the four main non-communicable diseases: cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic lung disease and diabetes – kill three in five people worldwide, requires immediate decisive action,” Ambassador Rebong said.
The Permanent Representative also highlighted the Philippines’ determined action in preventing NCDs.
In 2011, the Philippines signed its National Policy on Strengthening the Prevention and Control of Chronic Lifestyle Related Non-Communicable Diseases.
A year after its signing, the Sin Tax Law for Alcohol and Tobacco products was passed in 2012 which reduced the number of tobacco consumption in the youth and the poor according to a survey done in 2014. The Law also shored up revenues to fund the Philippines’ Universal Health Care (UHC) Program where preventing NCD is one of the program’s major priorities. The law appropriates 85% of the revenues to the UHC and for the nationwide health enhancement facilities program.
The Department of Health (DOH) has also directed its attention to the country’s children and adolescents where 9% currently smoke cigarettes, 10% are overweight, 3% are obese, and only 14% have regular physical activity.
“We consider this crucial in the fight against NCDs because a decade from now, by the time we evaluate our achievements in the nine global targets, our youth would have been at an age where they would be joining our work force. We need healthy populations to be competitive across borders,” the Ambassador emphasized.
The DOH has partnered with the Department of Education to promote in schools a healthy lifestyle by making them mindful of what they eat and encourage physical activity. One such program is the Belly Gud program, a waist-reduction program, which is now being expanded to other government offices like the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP).
The DOH also implemented the mandatory food labeling for manufactured food products and has also collaborated with the World Health Organization in preparing the guidelines for a voluntary healthy food certification program which sets the limits on calorie, fat, sugar and salt content of processed foods.
The Philippines have also empowered its marginalized sector in fighting NCDs through public information and the provision of complete treatment packs of drugs for hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidimia and asthma as part of the implementation of the Department of Health’s Complete Treatment Pack (ComPack) under its Universal Health Care Program.
At the end of her speech, Ambassador Rebong urged members states that “as policy makers, we need to encourage and facilitate a change in lifestyle by taking decisive steps in the development and implementation of policies and interventions to attain global NCD targets.” END