Health System Reform the Only Viable Pathway to Address NCDs, Says Katie Dain at WHX Dubai
World Health Expo 2026 (formerly Arab Health) opened this week in Dubai, bringing together key UAE government entities and global health stakeholders to discuss how to build resilient, data-driven, and equitable health systems. The event is welcoming more than 235,000 professional visits and over 4,300 exhibitors, with national pavilions from 32 countries.
In a keynote address on Day 1 of WHX Dubai, Katie Dain, CEO of the NCD Alliance, warned that the global storm of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) is intensifying. She highlighted escalating tensions and conflicts, the worsening climate crisis, shifting geopolitics, multilateralism under pressure, and deep funding cuts to the health sector as key drivers of the growing burden.
Despite this challenging global context, Dain said the current moment presents an opportunity to reform the global health architecture in ways that could help avert the rising tide of NCDs, save lives, and protect future generations.
“Health system reform is no longer one option for governments to consider – it is the only viable pathway.”
Dain emphasised that there is growing consensus that addressing NCDs and achieving Universal Health Coverage requires moving away from fragmented, vertical approaches and toward integrated, person-centred health systems strengthening.
She underscored the importance of systems rooted in primary healthcare, with prevention and health promotion at the core—not only at the beginning of the care journey, but across the entire care continuum, including for people already living with NCDs, to help them better manage their conditions and avoid complications.
These priorities were echoed in the panel session “From Prevention to Prosperity: Advancing Health and Wellbeing across the Life Course.” The session featured Katie Dain and NCDA Board Member, Dr. Jackie Kassouf Maalouf, Founder and President of DiaLeb – National Diabetes Organization, who shared regional and community-level perspectives informed by more than 15 years of work in diabetes prevention and care.
The panel also included Dr. Nahida Nayaz Ahmed and was moderated by Farah Yehia, PhD, and brought together global and regional voices to explore how prevention, equity, and wellbeing can be embedded within health systems across the life course.
World Health Expo 2026 continues throughout the week, reinforcing the role of collaboration, prevention-focused policy, and health system reform in addressing the growing challenge of noncommunicable diseases.
