As part of the development of its strategic plan 2019-2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced January 19 the ten greatest challenges for global health in 2019, which include Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) and antibiotic resistance. In the coming months WHO is expected to work on recommendations and guidelines on how to combat these challenges, to be passed on to member countries for their adoption.

WHO argues that NCDs, such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease, are responsible for more than 70% of deaths worldwide each year. In other words, some 15 million people between the ages of 30 and 69 die prematurely of them each year. According to WHO, the risk factors are tobacco and alcohol consumption, sedentary lifestyles, unhealthy diets and environmental pollution.

Furthermore growing antimicrobial resistance diminishes the success of antibiotics and antivirals in combating diseases such as pneumonia and tuberculosis. Consequently, more complex health procedures, such as chemotherapy, are compromised. This is further aggravated by primary care failures in low- and middle-income countries.