2018 High-level Meeting on NCDs

On the 27 September 2018, political leaders from around the world came together at the third United Nations (UN) High-level Meeting on noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) to review progress to date and set out a route to reinvigorate action to achieve the global NCD targets.

This was the first such comprehensive review since the adoption of the Agenda 2030 (or the Sustainable Development Goals), which include targets 3.4, to reduce premature mortality by one-third, and 3.8, achieving universal health coverage including financial risk protection. These meetings use the UN’s highest decision-making forum to bring together Heads of Governments from across the world to address issues of global importance – for cancer and NCDs this was an important opportunity to push NCDs up the national agendas and build political commitments through an Outcome Document to drive action nationally. Interested in finding out more about why these meetings matter?

HLM at a glance

The UN HLM :

• Took place on 27th September 2018 at UN headquarters in New York
• Focused on “Scaling up multistakeholder and multisectoral responses to the prevention and control of NCDs, in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”
• Produced a concise outcome document
• Drew together 23 Heads of State and Government and a further 55 Ministers of Health

Key dates and resources

• Political declaration on NCDs (New York, USA, on 27 September 2018). The declaration adopted at the meeting was intended to spur on action at country level, while also serving as a global consensus document. UICC felt it lacked the necessary ambition to drive the movement forwards, however there were a number of advantages and key language to support cancer control advocacy moving forwards. Read a short review of the declaration here.
   
• Interactive Civil Society Hearing (New York, USA on 5 July 2018)
  Provided a platform for active and meaningful engagement of civil society and other relevant stakeholders by sharing practical experiences from their work and making recommendations to support the development of the UN HLM outcome document.
   
• WHO Global Dialogue on Partnerships for Sustainable Financing of NCD Prevention and Control (Copenhagen, Denmark in April 2018)
   
• 2018 UN HLM Modalities Resolution 
  This document sets out the scope and arrangements for the meeting including the themes for roundtable discussions and participation.
   
• Report of the UN Secretary General on progress in the prevention and control of NCDs. The Secretary General’s report set out the global progress made since the 2011 and 2014 meetings, key challenges and bottlenecks to further progress. It was written to help frame discussions on the Political Declaration.
   
• Global conference on NCDs (Montevideo, Uruguay in October 2017)
  The meeting focused on building policy-coherence to support strong national NCD responses and help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Check out the  Montevideo Roadmap 2018-2030 on NCDs as a Sustainable Development Priority.