IDF African Region
The elected IDF Representatives for the African Region are:
Chair: Silver Bahendeka, Uganda
Vice-Chair: Evarist Bouenizabila, Republic of Congo
Regional Manager: Nancy Njie
Member associations of the IDF Africa Region.
The IDF African Region includes more than 37 Sub-Saharan African countries plus the islands of Madagascar and Seychelles. The Region has a very cosmopolitan population consisting of mostly Bantus and Arabs, with significant Indian, European and Chinese migrant communities located in Eastern and Southern Africa and on the islands of Madagascar and Seychelles.
The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is low in both rural and urban Bantu communities, but is ten times more prevalent in Muslim and Hindu communities in Tanzania and South Africa, and in the Chinese community in Mauritius. Type 1 diabetes, while still rare, is becoming increasingly prevalent. Diabetes is already a major public health problem in Africa and its impact is bound to increase significantly if nothing is done to curb the rising rate of impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), which now exceeds 16% in some countries.
The principal objectives of the African Region are to:
- Create new member associations
- Strengthen existing member associations through awareness programmes
- Stimulate the formation of intra-regional joint diabetes research
- Develop diabetes education
- Reinforce collaboration with WHO
IDF Africa Action Plan
On July 27 2009, the IDF African Region launched a critical action plan to address the escalating threat that diabetes poses to the region.
- Download the Action Plan (pdf, 80KB) - version française
- Download the Action Plan poster (pdf, 2MB) - version française
Diabetes Declaration and Strategy for Africa
A Diabetes Declaration and Strategy for Africa (pdf, 5MB) was launched during the 19th World Diabetes Congress in Cape Town, South Africa.
For further information about the Region, please contact:
E-mail: idfafrica@mail.gm
Tel: +220-4224174
