Expect more healthy living activities at work after the launch of the Healthy Setting Approach

People can expect a lot more activities promoting healthy living at the workplace and increasing resilience to COVID-19 following the launch of the Healthy Setting Approach at the Workplace this morning.

Permanent Secretary for Health, Doctor James Fong says during the acute phase of the pandemic, the ones who suffered the most were the vulnerable so trying to reduce the size of the vulnerable population is one of the biggest task they have to work on.

Dr. Fong says they have realised, especially at this post COVID time that to build back better and stronger, any creation of resilience needs to be across all sectors.

While speaking at the launch of the initiative, the President Ratu Wiliame Katonivere says in Fiji, over 80% of mortality is attributed to NCDs and NCD related illness and heart disease and diabetes remains the largest contributor to Fiji's mortality statistics.

He says in the 2018 Economic Burden Report, an estimated $406 million is the total economic burden due to NCDs to the Fijian society.

He says the pandemic revealed to us the need for multi-sectoral action with clarity of purpose and broad, innovative sectoral based approaches to combat these challenges.

The President is calling on workplaces, schools communities, to adopt the healthier workplace approach to decrease mortality rates as well as ensure a productive and healthy working population contributing to the economically sound nation.