TN signs pact with Japan agency to prevent non-communicable diseases

CHENNAI: The State health department has signed a Record of Discussions (RoD) with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for a project for the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in Tamil Nadu.

The project is expected to start from the fourth quarter of 2021 fiscal and aims at focusing on strengthening the managerial and technical capabilities of health personnel with respect to NCD prevention and control.

Saito Mitsunori, Chief Representative of JICA India, said the project is another step in contributing towards health services. “The likelihood of contracting non-communicable diseases has increased manifold in the last few years, especially with the urbanisation. It is important to focus on these diseases because overlooking the same could have grave consequences,” he said.

The death rate related to NCDs accounts for 63 per cent of all deaths and the probability of death from NCDs between the ages of 30 to 70 is 23 per cent according to UNICEF. On the other hand, during the pandemic, several diseases were relatively overlooked, as the hospitals prioritised COVID-19 patients. “This project will align itself with the Tamil Nadu Urban Health Care Project (ODA Loan Project signed in March 2016) and will implement several activities to strengthen NCD management in TN,” he said.

Besides the assessment of current methodologies for managing non-communicable diseases through surveys and studies, training will also be organised and conducted for technique, skill development enhancement, and strengthening capacities of health personnel working on non-communicable diseases.

JICA experts will be jointly working with the state government to provide technical guidance, advice, and recommendations during the course of the project.