Heart disease and stroke now kill 1.5 million Africans a year, study finds
Non-communicable diseases caused 4.7 million deaths on the continent in 2023. High blood pressure, diet and dirty air account for more than half of them.
Addis Ababa — Non-communicable diseases killed 4.7 million people in Africa in 2023, and the burden is still rising, according to an analysis highlighted by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
The figures come from the Global Burden of Disease study and were published this year in the journal Lancet Global Health.
The biggest killers
Ischaemic heart disease caused about 801,000 deaths and stroke about 700,000. Chronic kidney disease accounted for 293,000, hypertensive heart disease for 246,000 and diabetes for 245,000.
Together, non-communicable diseases cost the continent 263 million years of healthy life in 2023, measured in disability-adjusted life years.
Three risks behind half the deaths
High systolic blood pressure was linked to 26.2 per cent of the deaths. Dietary risks accounted for 14.7 per cent and air pollution for 14.2 per cent. The three together explain more than half of all deaths from these diseases.
Dr Mohammed Abdulaziz, who heads the disease control and prevention division at Africa CDC, said the findings reinforce the need for a coordinated response.
African health systems were largely built to fight infectious diseases such as malaria, HIV and tuberculosis. The findings add to evidence that long-term conditions, which need screening and years of treatment, now demand a comparable effort.
This report is based on a statement by Africa CDC, via AllAfrica.
