HIBAPRESS-RABAT-PRESS RELEASE
Like the international community, Morocco is celebrating World Diabetes Day today, with the theme chosen by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) for the period 2024-2026 is: “Diabetes and Well-being”.
It should be remembered that millions of people living with diabetes must demonstrate resilience, organization and responsibility to manage their health, which significantly impacts their physical and mental well-being. According to the IDF, 36% of people living with diabetes feel distress related to their disease, 63% say that fear of diabetes-related complications affects their well-being and 28% of diabetics have difficulty remaining positive in the face of their diabetes.
This day aims to mobilize health professionals, civil society and all partners in favor of the prevention and fight against diabetes and its complications by putting well-being at the heart of care so that each person living with diabetes can lead a fulfilling life.
It also aims to promote screening and early diagnosis of diabetes, particularly in people at high risk, in order to enable early treatment and prevent complications and premature mortality. In this sense, the Ministry of Health and Social Protection annually screens one million people at high risk in all primary health care establishments.
In addition, this day is also an opportunity to recall the importance of therapeutic education which allows people with diabetes to better manage their disease and acquire more autonomy.
It is important to emphasize that the continued increase in the incidence and prevalence of diabetes is evident and the epidemiological situation of this disease in Morocco is very worrying. In fact, diabetes affects more than 25,000 children, more than 2.7 million adults, 50% of whom were undiagnosed, and more than 2.2 million are pre-diabetic. It should also be noted that the Ministry of Health and Social Protection cares for more than 1,500,000 diabetics in primary health care establishments. These patients benefit from treatment consistent with a well-established care pathway.
