Delivered by Vanessa Peberdy, Manager, Global Health Policy, IFPMA

IFPMA welcomes the Political Declaration of the third High Level Meeting on NCDs, held in September last year. We were encouraged by the high political attention given to the meeting and the adoption of 14 new commitments by Heads of States and Government, as well as the move to broaden the scope to include reduction of air pollution and mental health.

However, we echo the widespread concerns that the current level of progress and investment is insufficient to meet target 3.4 of the SDGs. One of the reasons for this insufficient progress is a lack of multi-sectoral and multi-stakeholder collaboration. Our industry has responded to this with Access Accelerated, an initiative where 24 innovation-based biopharmaceutical companies have raised collaboration to an unprecedented level by partnering with countries, civil society, other non-pharmaceutical companies, academia, the World Bank and NGOs to drive cross-sectoral dialogue, support capacity building and to drive implementation of action plans in certain countries.

We reiterate that the innovative pharmaceutical industry is committed to work with all stakeholders to expand access to prevention, treatment and care, support capacity building and health literacy, foster patient empowerment and strengthen health systems preparedness for the management of non-communicable diseases, related mental health disorders and other mental health conditions. Where affordability represents a specific barrier to access, innovative models exist where industry collaborates with regional and local governments to address this issue in a holistic and sustainable manner.

There is an urgent need to work together and decisively on NCDs as UHC cannot be achieved without tackling NCDs head on. As a committed stakeholder in the fight against NCDs, we remain keen to develop bold and concrete collaborations with WHO and other global health stakeholders on prevention and control of NCDs and look forward to continuing the dialogue towards achieving this.

About IFPMA

IFPMA represents the innovative pharmaceutical industry at the international level, engaging in official relations with the United Nations and multilateral organizations. Our vision is to ensure that scientific progress translates into the next generation of medicines and vaccines that deliver a healthier future for people everywhere.

To achieve this, we act as a trusted partner, bringing our members' expertise to champion pharmaceutical innovation, drive policy that supports the research, development, and delivery of health technologies, and create sustainable solutions that advance global health.

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Media Contact

Elliot Dunster e.dunster@ifpma.org