This document is written primarily for the community of international development partners, as well as those in government and civil society concerned with urgent action to address the rapidly increasing burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in low- and middle -income countries and its serious implications for poverty reduction and economic development.

The six objectives of the 2008-2013 Action Plan are:

1. To raise the priority accorded to noncommunicable disease in development work at global and national levels, and to integrate prevention and control of such diseases into policies across all government departments.
2. To establish and strengthen national policies and plans for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases.
3.  To promote interventions to reduce the main shared modifiable risk factors for noncommunicable diseases : tobacco use, unhealthy diets, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol.
4.  To promote research for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases.
5. To promote partnerships for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases.
6. To monitor noncommunicable diseases and their determinants and evaluate progress at the national, regional and global levels.