Girls’ and women’s health is in transition and, although some aspects of it have improved substantially in the past few decades, there are still important unmet needs. Population ageing and transformations in the social determinants of health have increased the coexistence of disease burdens related to reproductive health, nutrition, and infections, and the emerging epidemic of chronic and non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Simultaneously, worldwide priorities in women’s health have themselves been changing from a narrow focus on maternal and child health to the broader framework of sexual and reproductive health and to the encompassing concept of women’s health, which is founded on a life-course approach.
This expanded vision incorporates health challenges that affect women beyond their reproductive years and those that they share with men, but with manifestations and results that affect women disproportionally owing to biological, gender, and other social determinants.
Access to essential medications, such as insulin, must be improved and the impact of NCD preventive activities and preparedness for crisis further addressed.
Although this seems an insurmountable task, the impressive progress that has been made in the management of communicable diseases demonstrates that large-scale change is achievable with global collaboration, research and advocacy. Therefore, let us face this new frontier in global health with courage to establish feasible and effective interventions in order to improve humanitarian action and join international efforts to prevent, control and ultimately reduce the burden of NCDs, in particular in the world’s most vulnerable populations.
Of the 46 countries in the World Health Organization (WHO) African region (AFRO), 43 are implementing Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) guidelines to improve their abilities to detect, confirm, and respond to high priority communicable and non-communicable diseases. IDSR provides a framework for strengthening the surveillance, response, and laboratory core capacities required by the revised International Health Regulations (IHR, 2005)]. In turn, IHR obligations can serve as a driving force to sustain national commitments to IDSR strategies.
The ability to report potential public health events of international concern according to IHR (2005) relies on early warning systems founded in national surveillance capacities. Public health events reported through IDSR to the WHO Emergency Management System in Africa illustrate the growing capacities in African countries to detect, assess, and report infectious and noninfectious threats to public health. The IHR (2005) provide an opportunity to continue strengthening national IDSR systems so they can characterise outbreaks and respond to public health events in the region.