The effects of COVID-19 on Non-Communicable Diseases: A Case Study of Six Countries

Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) are health conditions that cannot be transmitted from one patient to another, and usually manifest a prolonged, persistent, and slow pathology. NCDs are responsible for over 70% of all deaths, with nearly 80% of these deaths occurring in low-and middle-income countries. In addition, NCDs constitute approximately 80% of all years lived with disability globally. With the global population aging, rises in multi-morbidity, longer life expectancies, and increasing survival rates, more and more people are expected to live with the health burden of NCDs (WHO, 2020).

COVID-19 is an ongoing pandemic that emerged at the end of 2019 in China and spread quickly to the rest of the world, affecting, both directly and indirectly, the health and life of the global population. This research attempts to understand the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on NCDs in Burkina Faso, Bangladesh, Colombia, DRC, Nigeria, and Syria. All six countries are included in the iMMAP COVID-19 Situational Analysis Program, as they are affected by humanitarian crises and conflicts. The report covers the effects of COVID-19 on access to health services, resources allocations, and the medical status of the patients with NCDs.

The research relies on the data collected from trusted academic and institutional sources stored in the DEEP Platform, or directly from World Health Organization (WHO), Centre for Disease Control (CDC), British Medical Journal (BMJ), and ELSEVIER. This secondary data review was complemented with primary data, collected through a key informants’ survey conducted using Kobo Toolbox. For the complete questionnaire, please see Annex1