Dear Colleagues,

Welcome to the 2024 Global NCD Alliance Forum! We are excited to have you here with us as we launch the event website.

This year’s Forum is strategically timed. It will lead us along a clear path to the 4th UN High-Level Meeting (HLM) on NCDs taking place in New York in 2025. It is not by chance that Leadership on NCDs towards 2025 & beyond is the theme for the Forum, as strong leadership at every level is crucial to accelerate action on NCDs. This Forum will provide the platform for the global NCD movement to strategise, coordinate, and unite ahead of the UN HLM, to ensure the meeting results in meaningful change for people at risk of and living with NCDs.

This October, we will gather in Rwanda for the first time to spotlight the African continent as one of the global epicentres of the NCD epidemic. By 2030, NCDs are expected to surpass HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis, and maternal deaths as the main cause of death in the region.

People in this region are being impacted by NCDs at younger ages than in other parts of the world and essential care for people living with NCDs remains out of reach for millions. Sustained action on NCDs across the region is essential, and the Forum will aim to contribute to this.

Rwanda is already a beacon of progress on health, including NCDs. The host country of the Forum is a trailblazer in reforming Universal Health Coverage, implementing its NCD strategy 2020-2025 with a strong multi stakeholder approach, decentralising integrated NCD care to health facilities and involving communities. Hosting the Forum in Rwanda is a great opportunity to promote good practices and leadership on NCDs, as well as building momentum regionwide.

At the heart of the Forum and speeding up the NCD response is the role of civil society, building demand and driving change. We look forward to a vibrant and impactful event.

The NCD Alliance wishes to thank The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust for their partnership to make the 4th Global NCD Alliance Forum a reality. The Forum is co-hosted by the Rwanda NCD Alliance, in partnership with the Rwanda Ministry of Health and the Rwanda Biomedical Center, to whom we extend our deepest gratitude.

Sincerely,