Cameroon concludes thrilling sports tournament for NCD prevention

The final round of Cameroon Baptist Convention (CBC) Health Services Sports Tournament took place at the end of March, with staff from CBC Health Services participating in numerous activities ranging from inclusive aerobics to football and athletics.

The games that began in 2023 were initiated as a way to focus attention on the fight for NCD prevention, in a country in which 33% of children are predicted to have high BMI by 2035, and in which comorbidities attributable to increased BMI, including high blood pressure, hyperglycaemia and low HDL cholesterol, will all treble among children between 2020 and 2035 (Data source: World Obesity Atlas 2024).

The games concluded on 24 March 2024 at Bamendzi Stadium in Bafoussam, Cameroon, with staff from CBC Health Services facilities across the country participating in a weekend filled with thrilling competition, camaraderie, and a celebration of healthy living.

Closing the tournament, the Director of the CBC Health Services, Prof. Tih Pius Muffih, noted the success of the tournament since it began, and participation of staff in one sporting or activity discipline on a weekly basis. “The tournament came about as a result of an increase in Non-Communicable Diseases and we say if we don’t actually defeat it, it will defeat us."

Awards were presented to Prof. Tih Pius and several of the organising group of the DHS Sports Tournament, as well as the media outlets throughout Cameroon which covered the games.