World Health Organization

2015

As the leading cause of death and disability in the WHO European Region, noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) are an urgent priority for all its Member States. Increasingly, political leaders are recognizing that NCDs are not simply a health issue but also a major threat to achieving international development goals and reducing inequalities among and within populations. In recent United Nations and WHO resolutions on NCDs, governments have expressed their commitment to developing multisectoral, whole-of-government, whole-of-society policy approaches that address inequalities and the social determinants of NCDs, and to considering them in the broader context of national development goals.