The UN HLM on NCDs
The United Nations (UN) High-Level Meeting (HLM) on Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs) took place on 25 September 2025. It provided countries an opportunity to reinforce their commitment to accelerating global NCD prevention and control. It is the fourth HLM held on NCDs and resulted in a new political declaration on NCDs adopted by the UN in December 2025.
Given the rising global challenge of NCDs, it’s critical that countries invest in and integrate hepatitis testing, treatment and vaccination into their national NCD prevention and control strategies and programmes to reduce the burden of preventable cancers.
Countries committed to this at the UN HLM on NCDs by including hepatitis within the new political declaration:
Paragraph 54. Prevent liver cancer and other liver diseases and reduce mortality through scaling up hepatitis B and C prevention, diagnosis and treatment, hepatitis B vaccination, monitoring to detect liver cancer early and improve survival, as well as strengthening screening and management for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease;
Momentum from the UN HLM on NCDs must be sustained to ensure that countries turn the political declaration’s commitments into action. WHA has developed a briefing to support hepatitis and cancer advocates in engaging their governments on implementing the political declaration’s pledges, including advocacy messages and calls to action.
Preparing for the UN HLM on NCDs
While only member states could feed into the political declaration, advocates could engage UN missions and governments officials in the lead up to the HLM to propose that hepatitis is included within the political declaration.
WHA developed a briefing for hepatitis and cancer advocates which includes:
- Background to the UN HLM on NCDs
- Our suggested text for the new political declaration
- Rationale for the integration of hepatitis and NCD policies and programmes
- Key advocacy priorities around the UN HLM on NCDs
To find out more about hepatitis and NCDs, please visit:
https://www.worldhepatitisalliance.org/hepatitis-liver-cancer-ncds/