The eighth ‘Stop Cervical, Breast and Prostate Cancer in Africa’ Conference has opened in Windhoek, Namibia. It is being attended by African First Ladies, including Ghana’s Lordina Dramani Mahama, their technical advisers and health officials.

Also participating in the Conference are parliamentarians, major stakeholders from health, civil society and development partners. A release from the Presidency at Flagstaff House copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on Monday, stated that the deliberations of the conference will focus on the “Move Forward To End Cervical Cancer by 2030” campaign.

Mrs. Mahama who left Accra on Saturday for Windhoek will be sharing with the Conference, Ghana’s campaign to fight cervical and breast cancer, and other points to share from Ghana’s implementation of a new five-year National Strategy for Cancer Control.

Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women, worldwide, with an annual incidence of almost 500,000 new cases and 275,000 deaths. “According to the 2014 World Health Organization report, 38 million people die from non-communicable diseases globally every year. These include cancers and more than 28 million, making up 73.7 per cent of the deaths, occur in developing countries”, the release indicated.

It said the goal of the three-day conference is to review the status of the cancers in the context of sexual and reproductive health and rights in Africa, with particular focus on girls, adolescents, youth, women and men of the reproductive age.

The conference is jointly organised by the Forum of African First Ladies Against Breast & Cervical Cancer and the Princess Nikky Breast Cancer Foundation, under the auspices of the First Lady of Namibia, Madam Penehupifo Pohamba.