EDITORIAL: PROMOTE HEALTHY LIVING TO KEEP DISEASES AT BAY
According to the World Health Organisation, around 30 million people across the world die of non-communicable diseases annually. This number represents 63 per cent of all deaths that occur worldwide.
Non-communicable diseases are associated with the way people live. Poor dietary habits, lack of sleep and exercise are among the leading causes.
Diabetes, cancer, heart and respiratory diseases were a few years ago projected to cause 73 per cent deaths by 2020 and cover 60 per cent of the global disease burden. During the 1980s, one in every 100 people aged over 25 in Tanzania was diabetic, but the number had shot up to around 10 in every 100 by 2020. This statistic should be cause for grave concern.
The good news, however, is that non-communicable diseases are preventable by simply being conscious of the Dos and Don’ts of healthy living. It is a pity that amongst our communities, some trends that mess up people’s health are routed in our cultures.
Being overweight, for instance, which makes one a perfect candidate for heart diseases and diabetes, is considered a status symbol. This explains why some people will over-indulge in food with the express intention of getting fat!
This makes it necessary to carry out educational campaigns on the essence of healthy eating, exercise and regular medical check-ups targeting all Tanzanians.
Many people might wish to go to the gym but the charges are usually too high for most of them. It would make a lot of sense if the government reduced tax charged on gym equipment. Providing subsidies to gym operators would also make exercising affordable to more Tanzanians.
We consider very commendable the move by some non-governmental organisations in the country to undertake a countrywide campaign to educate people on how to forestall and manage non-communicable diseases.
SISAL TECH WORTH CONSIDERING
New technology that uses sisal to produce durable and inexpensive building materials has been developed. Experts say sisal composites can be used to produce building materials known for their high quality.
The technology was pioneered in China, and has already been successfully adopted in Ethiopia, Nigeria, Mali, Ghana and Algeria, where those using it are reportedly reaping huge benefits.
The most interesting aspects are two key benefits the technology can bring – reducing the cost of production by up to 40 per cent and, most interestingly, the ability of the materials to make structures resistant to earthquakes.
We strongly urge the National Building Agency, which conducts research in the field, not to miss the opportunity to get ample information on the new technology.
We believe that promoting the technology will be of great benefit to Tanzania.
There is no doubt Tanzania has more than enough sisal for producing building materials from its composites. That is why we consider this a great opportunity that, if exploited, can give a big push to efforts being made to increase access to decent housing at affordable prices.
