Covering 60% of the world’s population and 80% of global gross domestic product, the G20 is an influential multilateral body which is comprised of a number of the world’s major developing and emerging economies.
Under the lens of securing global economic growth and development, the body examines several workstreams which may impede this, one such area being threats to health.
The Values 20 (V20) are a global community of expert and practitioners, actively seeking to engage with the G20 to add a depth to the understanding of values and human centred public policy.
ADI Regional director for Asia Pacific, DY Suharya, has been invited to co-chair and lead on a V20 work stream in preparation for the Group of 20 (G20) meeting in Bali, Indonesia later this year. The work streams will focus specifically on promoting wellbeing and capacity building under the overarching theme of reflecting on societal and global values.
Affecting more than 55 million people worldwide and costing the global economy 1.3 trillion USD annually, ADI has actively been engaging with other V20 members to highlight the importance of public policy to support those living with dementia and carers, as well as mitigate its impact on society.
Under the overarching theme of health and wellbeing, as well as capacity building, ADI has highlighted through taskforce essays the importance of provisions and support for those living with dementia and their careers, underscoring the necessity of national dementia plan implementation, increased education and awareness, and the importance of risk reduction.
DY said: “It was a privilege to be invited to lead a V20 task force. Every three seconds, someone in the world develops dementia and we are on the verge of an impending public health crisis. G20 governments have the resources and capability to address this before it is too late. They must take note by implementing effective public policy without delay.”
ADI had successful engagement with the G20 in 2019 in Osaka, Japan. Through a coordinated campaign involving ADI member associations, dementia was included within the Okayama Declaration, which made a number of important commitments around dementia and spanned six articles of the document.
With three years remaining until the predicted completion of the Global action plan on the public health response to dementia, ADI hopes that the G20 nations of 2022 will take note of the global burden that dementia presents and follow through on their commitment to implement national dementia plans.