The Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA) region is facing one of the greatest healthcare challenges of our time: the diabetes pandemic. It is estimated that 26.6 million people in the region have diabetes and this number is set to double to 51.7 million by 2030.
To help find solutions to this challenge, Novo Nordisk is sponsoring a Diabetes Leadership Forum on 12-13 December in Dubai. At the Forum, a group of over 600 regional and international experts and decision-makers from 22 countries and territories in the MENA region will participate. The attending countries are Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Palestinian National Authority, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, UAE and Yemen.
This high-level event will feature keynote addresses by President Bill Clinton, founder of The William J Clinton Foundation, and His Royal Highness Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark.
“Our hope with this event is to find solutions to the diabetes challenge in the MENA region. We know we can improve on diabetes prevention, early detection and quality of care. The meeting is about sharing the responsibility of fighting diabetes and committing to taking action on a national and regional level,” says Lars Rebien Sørensen, president and CEO of Novo Nordisk.
The aim of the Forum is that all participating nations will adopt the Dubai Diabetes Declaration, featuring country-specific action plans designed to turn the trend in diabetes, which is imposing overwhelming demands on the region’s healthcare systems and financial burdens on its governments. Ultimately, the hope is to contribute to changing behaviours in the entire MENA region when dealing with diabetes.
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