WHO’s supported interventions on salt intake reduction in the sub-Saharan Africa region

Globally, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the number one cause of death. In 2012, an estimated 17.5 million people died from CVDs. This represents 31% of all global deaths and over two thirds of these deaths are happening in low and middle income countries (1). Hypertension is the leading cause of CVD. It is estimated that at least 1 billion adults have hypertension globally, and that hypertension is associated with more than 9 million deaths annually (2,3). In the past two decades, sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is experiencing an epidemic of hypertension and consequential CVD, which is mainly a result of the region’s epidemiologic transition driven by the breakdown of traditional ways of life, urbanization, physical inactivity, high salt and fat consumption, and population growth and aging (4). According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2008 SSA had the highest prevalence of hypertension, with 46% of adults aged 25 and older affected in the region (3). Decreasing blood pressure at a population level is required to curb the predicted escalating increase in the rate of CVDs