Focus on Addressing Non Communicable Diseases

Focus on Addressing Non Communicable Diseases

Press Statement

Preamble

The NCCK Nyanza Region has held a two-day consultation on healthy living, with a specific focus on addressing the growing crisis of Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs), here at CDF Hall, Nyamira County. The delegates, drawn from Homa Bay, Kisii, Kisumu, Migori, Nyamira and Siaya Counties reflected on the scripture recorded in Exodus 23: 25

Worship the Lord your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you.

Recognizing that it is God’s will and intention for all people to be healthy, we share the following message.

1. Declare NCDs a National Emergency

Non Communicable Diseases are devastating the country. There is no family in Kenya today that does not have one or more members suffering from diabetes, hypertension, cancer, heart disease or another cardiovascular disease. Data from the government shows that more than 50% of hospitalizations and 39% of deaths in Kenya are as a result of Non Communicable Diseases. Families have been crippled, their incomes and resources wiped out. This is an epidemic we cannot ignore any more. To rescue our nation, we demand that the government declares Non Communicable Diseases a national emergency. Full and unwavering attention of the entire government must be put on addressing this crisis before it wipes out the entire population.

2. Protect Healthy Diets

The old adage that “you are what you eat” is true, noting that healthy lives are a result of healthy eating. This is the mindset that the drafters of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 had when they included the following provisions:

Article 43(1)(c) Every person has the right – to be free from hunger, and to have adequate food of acceptable quality

Article 46(1)(b) Consumers have the right – to the information necessary for them to gain full benefit from goods and services

To protect the access Kenyans have to healthy diets of adequate amounts, we strongly recommend the following measures:

a) Teach Nutrition at all Levels

We challenge both national and county governments to employ an adequate number of nutritionists and then facilitate them to educate the citizens on healthy diets for healthy living. On our part, we are ready to partner with the governments in this venture by allowing the nutritionists to have access to our platforms so they educate the congregants. We further call on the Kenya Institute for Curriculum Development (KICD) to include nutrition studies at all levels of learning. Let us all join hands to help our people to control what they eat.

b) Introduce Front of Pack Warning Labels

We call for urgent enactment of laws and regulations by national and county assemblies to require that food processors include Front of Pack Warning Labels that will clearly indicate when products contain high levels of salt, sugar or saturated fats / oils. The warning labels, which should be of specific colour and size, will help families when they are making decisions when purchasing food items. This will be in addition to necessary improvements on the information contained on the back of pack labels, recognizing that what is contained on the current labels does not communicate to the consumers.

c) Regulate Advertisement of Unhealthy Foods

We call for immediate imposition of measures to regulate the targeting of children with advertisements of unhealthy foods that are high in sugar, salt and saturated fats and oils. Among other elements, the regulations should curtail the placement of advertisements for foods high in the nutrients of concern near schools or during the water-shed hours when children are likely to be consuming media. Further, we call for an immediate cessation of the use of children or children-like characters in advertisement of unhealthy foods. We should not allow anyone selling poisons to pretend they are selling healthy foods!

d) Adopt the Nutrient Profile Model

We call upon the Ministry of Health to work with stakeholders to finalize and adopt the evidence-based Nutrient Profile Model. This is an essential tool that will provide the standards for determining the acceptable levels of different nutrients in the various food groups. On our part, we commit to use our structures to sensitize the citizens on the profile model and related regulations once these are put in place.

3. Revert to NHIF until the SHIF is ready

The transition from the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) to the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) is not working. Rather than delivering universal health coverage as promised, the transition is delivering pain, suffering, death and injustice to the citizens of Kenya. It is very unfortunate that the health and wellbeing of Kenyans have been sacrificed on the altar of unjust financial benefit of some government officials. Indeed, there is no clear justification for the transition other than increase in the amounts of premiums contributed by salaried Kenyans.

We demand that the government suspends the implementation of the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) and reverts to the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) until the Social Health Authority puts all necessary measures and structures in place.

In addition, we call for a radical change in the benefits provided under the SHIF to ensure they match, or at least are better, than the benefits that we enjoyed under the NHIF. It does not make sense to us that Kenyans are now paying more money but are getting less benefits.

4. Withdraw Kenya Gazette 14818 dated November 15, 2024

We demand the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Kenya Gazette number 14818 issued by the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development. We take full note that the regulations that the Cabinet Secretary is purporting to introduce through the Gazette are the same as the provisions that were in the Mung Beans Bill 2022 that Kenyans soundly rejected and forced Parliament to withdraw. If implemented, the regulations in the Kenya Gazette will stifle and eventually destroy production of mung beans (ndengu) and coco yams (arrow roots). This is a major threat to the food security of small-scale farmers and their families across Kenya by hindering their healthy feeding. It is very unjust and insulting for the government to introduce such controls through the back door so as to avoid proper public participation.

5. Let us Train our Children on Healthy Living

On their part, we appeal to parents to take advantage of the two-month holiday to instil life skills, culture of work, sense of responsibility and value of healthy eating for healthy living in the young ones. We encourage parents to consultatively develop adequate plans to keep the learners busy in productive activities, so that they don’t waste all their time on entertainment.

In addition, we encourage parents to regulate the children’s access to social media, while teaching them to use the internet to get worthwhile information and not just for entertainment. Cell phones and other gadgets should not be co-parents.

Further to this, we wish well for all the students who sat for their Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) and those who are completing their Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE). We prayed for you and we are confident that God will grant you good performance.

Conclusion

In conclusion, we recognize that God cares about good nutrition for all, just as we read in 1 Corinthians 6: 12

Everything is permissible for me, but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.

The foods we eat should be those that benefit us, but should not control us. Let us all join hands in cutting down the intake of high quantities of sugar, salt and saturated fats and oils. Let us all play our part in controlling Non Communicable Diseases. On their part, we urge the national and county governments to put in place the necessary legal and policy measures to regulate the nutrients of concern and to curtail advertisement of unhealthy foods.

We wish all people a Blessed and Merry Christmas and a God-Filled New Year 2025.

Signed on this 20^th day of November, 2024, at CDF Hall, Nyamira Town.

Bishop Titus Odoyo Okoda

Vice Chairman, NCCK Nyanza Region