The Challenge: How do we fight the growing burden on non-communicable diseases?

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While many advances have been made to improve the health and wellbeing of vulnerable groups around the world, there is still a great distance that we must go to meet the targets laid out in SDG 3. This goal includes indicators for reproductive, maternal, new-born and child health; infectious diseases; non-communicable diseases and mental health and health systems and funding.

Specific to SDG 3, AstraZeneca have focused their Lead2030 Challenge on SDG 3.4: to reduce by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) through prevention and treatment and to promote mental health and well-being. 

NCDs have emerged to become the number one cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, killing more than 41 million people each year. While they disproportionately impact people living in vulnerable or compromised situations, they are an issue for people everywhere. 

Young people are most at risk and they are also the point of great opportunity to change the trajectory of disease. Yet young people are seldom on the global health agenda. 70% of premature deaths from NCDs can be linked to behaviours and habits that form in adolescence. Prevention becomes a critical tool to fight the burden of NCDs.

About BIVE

Diana Quintero co-founded BIVE in 2012, seeking to develop a sustainable solution to growing healthcare problems in Colombia.

BIVE facilitates access to timely, high quality and affordable private healthcare services for more than 19,000 Colombian people, the majority being from low income coffee grower families.

BIVE operates free social projects for hundreds of rural families in Colombia’s coffee region, where the largest gap in the national health system is evident.

BR13 –a project by BIVE – provides leadership tools and technical knowledge on non-communicable diseases, mental, sexual and reproductive health, for rural youth between 11 and 18 years old, with the purpose of reducing avoidable mortality and morbidity in rural Colombia.

Lead2030 will help develop the BR13 initiative as well as the development of health education for teachers, students and grassroots organisations through the creation of toolkits and educational resources.