In Morocco, diabetes is still rife, despite the support measures deployed by the government. There are 2.7 million Moroccans sick and 2.2 million are pre-diabetic.
On the sidelines of the celebration of the world day against diabetes, the Ministry of Health took the opportunity to deliver the inventory of the disease in Morocco and recalled the importance of adopting a healthy lifestyle can delay the onset of the disease.
According to the ministry, the figures for diabetes are steadily increasing in Morocco among those over 18. The Stepwise National Survey, conducted in Morocco in 2018 among adults, found that 2.7 million have diabetes, 49% of whom are unaware of their disease and 2.2 million are pre-diabetic. To this should be added the 20,000 children with diabetes. The Ministry of Health and Social Protection takes care of more than one million diabetics at the level of primary health care establishments.
Asked about the care of Moroccan diabetics, Prof. Jamal Belkhadir, endocrinologist, diabetologist, president of the Moroccan League for the fight against diabetes indicated that the problem of the lack of insulin that arises in several particularly poor countries, mentioned by the UN in its last report, does not concern Morocco, because he assures, insulin is graciously offered in all the structures of care of the Ministry of Health, through all the national territory ”.
In the 2022 PLF, he said, the government planned to reduce the import duty from 40% to 2.5% on metformin hydrochloride. This element constitutes a medicinal preparation intended after processing for the manufacture of drugs used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Its role is to decrease the insulin resistance of the body intolerant to carbohydrates and to decrease hepatic gluconeogenesis.
However, Prof. Jamal Belkhadir felt that in line with the theme of World Diabetes Day this year: “Access to care, if not now, when? “, The effort that must be made at the national level, lies in early and quality management of the diabetic, which implies in particular early detection in people at risk.
Likewise, the quality of the diabetes balance must be a priority objective in order to avoid complications and increased costs for the diabetic, his family and for society.
