In-country activities
National Health Promotion Day in Moldova
On March 14th 2018, National Health Promotion Day, a two-day working conference on the latest evidence in Health Promotion and Behaviour Change for Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) was held in Chisinau. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Social Protection and the National Agency for Public Health spearheaded this event, with support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation's Healthy Life Project.
Key national speakers were joined by speakers from several UK-based institutions: the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the Institute for Sport and Physical Activity Research, and the Department of Behavioural Science and Health, University College London.
Ensuring the event remained highly practical in content, participants - who included primary health and social care providers as well as local council members from several villages in the 10 raions supported by the Healthy Life Project (Viață Sănătoasă Project) - directly interacted with national and international experts. They also spent time directly at the event to start to develop their own raion level intersectoral action plans for Behaviour Change Communication for the main risk factors for NCDs.
Moldova is currently facing a high burden of NCDs and is mobilizing its efforts to strengthen Public Health Services and Family Medicine-oriented Primary Health Care, including also social care. Carolina Cerniciuc, Health Promotion Advisor, highlighted how Moldova actively involves its citizens in the reduction of NCD-related risk factors: "Engaging the general public, finding local health champions and increasing citizens' levels of health literacy will be critical pillars for the achievement of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda".
The goal of the Healthy Life Project is to reduce NCD-related morbidity and mortality in the country, including through facilitating the adoption of evidence-based approaches to health promotion, and thus contribute to the improvement and wellbeing of the Moldovan population, especially in rural areas. The Healthy Life Project of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) is implemented by the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute.
Links
Ministry of Health, Labour and Social Protection, Republic
of Moldova http://msmps.gov.md/ro
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Republic of
Moldova https://www.eda.admin.ch/deza/en/home/countries/moldova.html
Healthy Life Project https://www.facebook.com/viatasan.md/
Contact person:
- Dr. Valeriu Sava, National Program Officer in Health,
Representation of the Embassy of Switzerland to Moldova, Swiss Cooperation
Office, Chisinau | valeriu.sava@eda.admin.ch
