Historic step forward for sickle cell disease

For the first time, sickle cell disease is explicitly included in a UN Political Declaration on Noncommunicable Diseases, adopted at the 2025 UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs.

This recognition matters.

By being referenced alongside other major chronic conditions within a primary health care and universal health coverage framework, sickle cell disease is now firmly anchored in the global NCD agenda. It reflects growing recognition that SCD is a severe, lifelong noncommunicable disease and that health systems committed to equity and UHC must address early diagnosis, continuity of care, access to essential medicines, pain management and psychosocial support.

Globally, an estimated 515,000 children are born with sickle cell disease every year, with the highest burden in low- and middle-income countries. Yet the condition also increasingly affects health systems in Europe, North America, India and the Middle East, underscoring the need for integrated, life-course approaches across regions.

Inclusion in a UN Political Declaration is a powerful lever to scale up investment, strengthen primary care responses, and close persistent gaps in survival and quality of life for people living with SCD worldwide.

Read our Position Paper here