President of Ghana Diabetes Association is new Chairperson of IDF West Africa

President of Ghana Diabetes Association (GDA) has been elected as the new chairperson of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), West Africa.

Elizabeth Esi Denyo was elected for a four year term, at the just ended 2019 Biannual World Diabetes Congress held at Busan, South Korea between December 2-6, 2019.

She told ghananewsonline.com.gh that her immediate concerns would be to improve communication in the West African sub-region especially among the anglophone member states as well as “collective clearance of medication”.

She promised to strengthen member associations, for each country to have access to medication without stress.

Mrs. Denyo stated that her administration will try to “eradicate Vail Insulin in West Africa so that we can use Analog Insulins if possible”.

According to her, Ghana is not performing badly but stakeholders including the government must step up its games targeting prevention and early treatment when it comes to diabetes.

The chairperson who is a Nurse by profession noted that, “Ghana is performing more strongly in policies for health systems and access, monitoring and surveillance, and budget and financing than in other areas”.

There have been reports that Ghana does not have guidelines for the management of NCDs.

To meet the challenge of diabetes, the Association has indicated the need for the Government of Ghana to introduce appropriate policies and enforce those already in existence; monitoring and surveillance need to be strengthened and extend services for prevention at secondary complications as well as diabetes self-management education.

The Congress has brought hundrends of physicians, scientists, nurses, educators, other healthcare professionals, government officials, policy makers and diabetes associations that IDF represents together for an extensive global network.

IDF 2019 in Busan has provided a unique forum for knowledge exchange and sharing of best practice in diabetes prevention, education and treatment, helping to foster the collaborations, connections and political breakthroughs that are required to improve the lives of people living with diabetes, help protect those at risk and reduce the impact of diabetes on societies.

The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) is an umbrella organization of over 230 national diabetes associations in 170 countries and territories.

It represents the interests of the growing number of people with diabetes and those at risk.

The Federation has been leading the global diabetes community since 1950.

The IDF Congress 2019 marked a return to the IDF Western Pacific region following the successful IDF Congress 2013 in Melbourne, Australia.

The Region has the largest population of all IDF regions and is home to close to 40% of all people living with diabetes, with China accounting for the highest number of people with diabetes in the world.

A cause of particular concern in the region is the large undiagnosed population.

Over 1 in 2 people with diabetes in the Western Pacific are undiagnosed.

Busan is Korea’s second most populous city, with a population of over 3.5 million inhabitants.

It is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern Korea.

Busan is also a center for international conventions and events, having hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum in 2005 and the Asian Games and FIFA World Cup in 2002.

The city was ranked among Asia’s Top 5 convention cities by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA).

Source: Edzorna Francis Mensah