The UK Working Group on Non-communicable Diseases
draws attention to and encourages action to address the
growing burden of NCDs as an international development priority
The UK Working Group on NCDs
The UK Working Group on Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs) is a network of over 20 UK-based national and international NGOs and research organisations, which work together to draw attention to the urgent need to address the burden of NCDs as an international development priority.
The UK Working Group on NCDs was founded in early 2018 to advocate for strong UK government representation at the United Nations High-level Meeting (UNHLM) on NCDs, held in that year. In 2019, attention pivoted to the lead-up to the UNHLM on Universal Health Coverage, advocating that NCD prevention and control be included as a core component. In 2020/2, it focused on the clear links between COVID-19 and chronic conditions.
In 2025, the UKWG turned its attention to the fourth UNHLM on HCDs with regular discussions with the UK government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. These discussions continue in 2026 and we have developed a briefing document on the importance of NCDs within the international development agenda. These are challenging times for global health – and all the changes should take NCDs into account, as they account for the majority of deaths in most parts of the world.
The UK Working Group on NCDs has been proud to be a UK member of the NCD Alliance since 2019, and in 2020 and 2021 received $15,000 grants from the NCD Alliance’s Civil Society Solidarity Fund on NCDs and COVID-19. In 2020/21 this culminated in a successful webinar on ‘Resourcing for health‘, and 2021/2 we were able substantially to increase our engagement with people with lived experience of NCDs through a project focusing on overseas development assistance and NCDs in an era of COVID-19.
Covid-19 and NCDs
People living with NCDs have a significantly higher risk of severe COVID-19 outcomes, and the pandemic also has an impact on risk factors for future NCDs. The Working Group focused on the COVID-19 response in 2020/21.
UHC and NCDs
The UN High-level Meetings on Universal Health Coverage (in 2019, 2023 and – forthcoming – 2027) are key moments to advocate for NCD prevention and control being included as a core component in UHC.
Development and NCDs
The UK Working Group acts as a rallying point for coordination and advocacy on the importance of NCDs as an international development priority in the UK and beyond.
What are NCDs?
Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are not transmissible from person to person. They tend to be of long duration and are the result of a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental and behavioural factors. NCDs include cardiovascular disease (heart disease and stroke), diabetes, chronic lung disease and cancer, which together account for 70% of deaths worldwide, with mental-health and neurological conditions such as dementia adding significantly to this burden of ill health. Together, these five NCDs are estimated to cost US$47 trillion in lost gross domestic product globally between 2010 and 2030.
Over three-quarters of the NCD burden falls on people living in low- and middle-income countries, and 86% of deaths among those aged under 70 are from NCDs are in these regions. However, there is a severe mismatch between the scale of the NCD challenge and the allocation of official development assistance: only 2% of development assistance for health is spent on NCDs.
Significant progress could be made by health systems strengthening and improvement of treatment and management, and through prevention – particularly addressing five risk factors identified by the World Health Organization: poor nutrition, physical inactivity, tobacco use, harmful consumption of alcohol and air pollution.
See, for example, World Health Organization, Noncommunicable Diseases factsheet here.
About
The UK Working Group on NCDs is a UK-based network of civil society organisations advocating for NCDs to be at the heart of international development.
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