WHO global meeting to accelerate progress on SDG target 3.4 on noncommunicable diseases and mental health, 9–12 December 2019, Muscat, Oman: meeting report

Overview

In an effort to spur the implementation of national responses against NCDs, WHO and the Government of the Sultanate of Oman co-organized the Global Meeting to Accelerate Progress on SDG Target 3.4 on Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health. Oman was chosen for its remarkable achievements in terms of sustained investment in development of the health sector, political commitment to prioritization of NCDs as part of universal health coverage, and institutionalization of the SDGs within the national health agenda.

The focus of the Global Meeting was on overcoming the implementation challenges and building the capacities of national NCD managers to reduce premature mortality from NCDs through prevention and treatment and to promote mental health and well-being. The meeting embraced the so-called five-by-five approach and offered sessions on the four main types of NCDs plus mental health, along with the main risk factors, including tobacco use, harmful use of alcohol, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and air pollution.

The technical part of the meeting introduced all WHO packages and tools to help countries implement the whole spectrum of NCD interventions from promotion and prevention to treatment, rehabilitation and palliation. The partners’ forum provided an opportunity for national NCD managers to engage with relevant non-State actors to explore opportunities for meaningful and effective collaboration at global, regional and local levels to reduce premature mortality from NCDs and promote mental health, while giving due regard to managing potential conflicts of interest.

• More information about the meeting: WHO Global Meeting to Accelerate Progress on SDG target 3.4 on NCDs and Mental Health