At Lake Health and Wellbeing, we proudly serve as the Convenor and Secretariat for the St. Kitts and Nevis NCD Alliance. This national coalition brings together NGOs already working on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) across the Federation, united by a shared mission: to prevent and control NCDs through coordinated, strategic advocacy.
In that spirit of collaboration and empowerment, we kicked off the year with a dynamic capacity-building session titled “Understanding the NCD Policymaking Process for Effective Advocacy: Local, Regional, and Global Perspectives.” Held in January, the session brought together civil society organisations and young people with a passion for advocacy and a desire to create meaningful, population-level change.
The event aimed to strengthen the ability of NGOs and our growing team of Youth Health Advocates to engage more effectively in policy advocacy. Participants gained valuable insights into the policymaking process and explored how civil society can play a critical role in shaping the NCD agenda—locally, regionally, and globally. Importantly, we also looked ahead to the upcoming United Nations High-Level Meeting (HLM) on NCDs, scheduled for September 2025, and discussed how our collective voice can contribute to this global movement.
A key outcome of the session was the review of regional and global NCD priorities from the Healthy Caribbean Coalition and the NCD Alliance. This informed the development of a local advocacy priority document, positioning us to influence national NCD policy in the lead-up to the HLM.
We are incredibly grateful to our speakers for generously sharing their expertise:
- Abi Begho – Programme Director, Lake Health and Wellbeing
- Michele Baker – Advocacy Officer, Lake Health and Wellbeing
- Nadine Carty – Health Promotion Unit Coordinator, Nevis
- Rohan Walters – Legal Officer, Attorney General’s Chambers, Ministry of Justice & Legal Affairs & The Law Commission of St. Kitts and Nevis
- Maisha Hutton – Executive Director, Healthy Caribbean Coalition
- Linda Senk Markova – Capacity Development Manager, NCD Alliance
- Saros Hendrickson – Director, Department of Gender Affairs, Nevis
A special thank you to our moderator, Jay Robinson, Project Assistant at Lake Health and Wellbeing, for skillfully guiding the discussion and creating an engaging space for learning and collaboration.
We also extend our heartfelt thanks to the Commonwealth Foundation, through its Capacity Strengthening Grant Programme, and the Global Health Advocacy Incubator for their generous support of this initiative.
With the momentum gained from this session, we’re energised to continue building a strong, informed, and connected NCD civil society movement in St. Kitts and Nevis.
Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to advocate for healthier communities.
