HCC: With fourteen (14) delegates, the Caribbean was well represented at the recent NCD Alliance Global Forum held in Kigali, Rwanda from 12-15 February 2025. The meeting was the largest yet, bringing together over 700 NCD advocates from across the globe united and moblising around the upcoming 4th UN High Level Meeting on NCDs to be held on 24 September, 2025 at the UNGA in NYC. 

The HCC was represented by Vice President Debbie Chen (also CEO of the Heart Foundation of Jamaica); Board Member, Charity Dublin (also Vice President of the Antigua and Barbuda Diabetes Association and HCY member); Executive Director Maisha Hutton, Advocacy Officer and Lead of Healthy Caribbean Youth, Danielle Walwyn; Project Assistant and HCY Member Dorial Quintyne; HCY Member Simone Mathews; HCC Technical Advisor (and Co-Chair of the NCDA Supporters Group) Professor Alafia Samuels; HCC Technical Advisor Pierre Cooke Jnr; and member of the HCC PLWNCDs High-level Advisory Group (and member of NCDA OVOV) Diana Gittens. 

Visit our webpage to see the full photo gallery.

HCC members from across the region were also out in full force including: Trinidad and Tobago NCD Alliance represented by Dr. Andrew Dhanoo (President Diabetes Association of Trinidad and Tobago) and Jessica Johns (President of Trinidad and Tobago Association of Nutritionists and Dietitians); Maria O’Brien (Director, Mindwise TT and Voices of SIDS lead); Michele Baker representing the St. Kitts and Nevis NCD Alliance/ Lake Health and Wellbeing (also Policy Coordinator at the Global Climate and Health Alliance (GCHA) and HCY member); and UNICEF youth activist Jamaica, Cavan Lewis.

Marvlyn Birmingham

Photo: Dominica News Online

Dominica News Online: On behalf of the Dominica Diabetes Association (DOMDA), we gather our hearts in remembrance of a remarkable leader, advocate, and friend—Miss Marvlyn Birmingham. It is with profound sadness that we acknowledge her passing on Wednesday. 05, February 2025, a tremendous loss for our community and for all those whose lives she touched. 

Miss Birmingham was not just the immediate past president of our association; she was a beacon of hope and a tireless warrior in the fight against diabetes. Her unwavering dedication to diabetes advocacy transformed the lives of many in Dominica. She worked endlessly to raise awareness, educate, and support individuals living with diabetes, tirelessly championing the cause with passion and grace.

HCC: Civil Society Organisation Capacity Building Sessions - Advocacy in Action: Preparing for High-Level Engagement, Thursday February 27th at 6.00PM - 7:00PM AST.

Objectives: 

• Equip participants with practical tips for preparing effectively for engagements with policymakers and high-level meetings.
• Provide strategies to maximize impact during stakeholder interactions, including leveraging key moments and ‘downtime’.
• Highlight strategies/opportunities for CSOs and youth to engage with policymakers ahead of UNHLM4.

HCC: Civil Society Organisation Capacity Building Sessions - Maximizing Social Media for Advocacy: Strategies for Engagement and Impact, Monday March 17th at 11:00 AM - 12:00PM AST.

Objectives: 

• Understand Key META Changes – Gain insights into recent META platform updates and their impact on social media advocacy and engagement.
• Explore Strategies for Content Creation – Learn how to effectively mobilize youth and volunteers to enhance content creation and digital advocacy efforts.
• Reflect on Platform Use – Assess the strengths and challenges of different social media platforms for advocacy and engagement.

HCC Webinar: Changing Systems, Healthier Lives: The Caribbean Journey to the UN High Level Meeting

Thursday March 13th 2025 | 10:00AM - 11:30PM AST

In commemoration of World Obesity Day under the theme “Changing Systems, Healthier Lives”, the HCC will host a webinar, “Changing Systems, Healthier Lives: The Caribbean Road to UN High Level Meeting on NCDs and Mental Health” which aims to:

1. Outline key advocacy priorities for Caribbean countries in preparation for the 2025 UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs.
2. Present examples of ongoing efforts and success stories in NCD prevention, control, and advocacy within the Caribbean region, highlighting potential progress or setbacks if advocacy priorities are not addressed.
3. Explore how attendees can amplify the Regional Advocacy Priorities through their local, regional and global work.

PAHO: The webinar will highlight the urgent need for scalable, evidence-based interventions and discuss key initiatives with experts, policymakers, and advocates.

WOD: For too long, responses to the obesity crisis have been focussed on individuals. It’s time we turn our attention to the systems that are failing us. Health systems, government systems, food systems, the media, and the environments we work and live in. All these systems are contributing to the increasing rates of obesity around the world. 

We must work together to call for change to these systems, and people living with obesity must lead this call. 

We must also recognise obesity as a complex, and chronic disease, and one that is also a driver of other diseases. Taking action on obesity is a critical step in reducing the global burden of other chronic diseases including diabetes, heart disease and cancer. 

Together, governments, health professionals, advocates and the public can transform our systems, and build a healthier future for people all over the world.

How can you get engaged?

Check out World Obesity Day Resources!  

Remember to register your event on their map of impact!

News From PAHO

Related Media: 

• Jamaica Observer: NCDs projected to cost Jamaica US$18.45 billion between 2015 and 2030
• Jamaica Observer: $4 billion allocated to combat NCDs
• Jamaica Observer: Lack of acceptance of NCDS a problem with J'cans

JAMA Network: Published online February 21, 2025.

Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) cause three-fourths of the world’s deaths, with the number continuing to increase.1 More than 40% of NCD deaths are among people younger than 70 years, and the NCD epidemic is driven by preventable factors such as uncontrolled hypertension, tobacco and alcohol use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, air pollution, and limited health care access.2 Despite their massive toll on health and economies, NCDs remain underfunded, receiving only about 2% of development assistance for health.

Global Mental Health Action Network: The UN High-Level Meeting (HLM) on Non-Communicable Diseases and Mental Health in September 2025 marks a pivotal moment to prioritise mental health on the global stage. Mental health is now a central focus of a UN HLM agenda providing a unique opportunity to drive transformative commitments and accelerate progress.

WHO: 24 – 25 April 2025 Geneva, Switzerland. The Second General Meeting of the Global Coordination Mechanism on NCDs (GCM/NCD) will convene Civil Society Actors and partners to put forward recommendations on accelerating multisectoral and multistakeholder responses to NCDs and mental health conditions. The event marks one of several major milestones on the road to 2025 and the Fourth High-level Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly on NCDs (HLM4).

HCC has developed a series of Childhood Obesity Prevention Policy Infographics. Childhood obesity is an emerging crisis globally and in the Caribbean where 1 in 3 children are overweight or obese. These are staggering numbers threaten to undermine the health of entire generations if bold policy and legislative actions are not taken now to create environments supportive of healthier, happier children and adolescents,