The World Health Organization (WHO) has released a technical report examining how community-driven health innovations can be scaled through public-sector systems, highlighting the importance of people living with non-communicable diseases (NCDs), mental health conditions and neurological conditions as experts and change agents in shaping health initiatives. Ogweno Stephen, who has served as a member of the WHO Global Coordination Mechanism on NCDs (WHO GCM/NCDs) NCD Labs Committee, contributed to the work through the review and selection of health innovations considered during the NCD Labs programme.
The report, titled Local Innovation, System Change: Public-Sector Pathways for Scaling Community-Driven Initiatives, draws on lessons and practical experiences from the WHO NCD Lab’s 2021–2024 project cycles. It explores how promising community-led initiatives can move beyond their original settings and become part of broader health system responses.
Stephen’s contribution formed part of the committee’s collective work in identifying and reviewing innovations in the NCD space. The process brought together different perspectives on how locally developed solutions can address gaps in prevention, care and support, particularly for populations whose experiences are often inadequately reflected in conventional health policies and programmes.
Recognising People Living with NCDs as Experts and Change Agents
A central message of the WHO report is that people directly affected by NCDs, mental health conditions and neurological conditions should not be viewed merely as beneficiaries of health interventions. Their lived experiences provide valuable knowledge that can help shape the design, implementation and evaluation of health initiatives.
People living with these conditions understand the social, cultural and economic realities that influence access to healthcare. They can identify barriers, highlight gaps in service delivery and provide insights into the needs of communities that may not be adequately captured through conventional health and demographic data.
The report highlights three important ways in which lived experience and community-driven innovation reinforce one another:
- Firsthand knowledge: Both draw on direct understanding of local circumstances, cultural contexts, economic realities, access barriers and implementation gaps.
- Stronger evidence for decision-making: Insights from affected communities complement traditional health and demographic data, helping make policies and programmes more contextualised, inclusive and responsive.
- Meaningful participation: Both require inclusive spaces for participation and shared decision-making, allowing communities, innovators, governments and other stakeholders to collaborate in shaping solutions.
This approach challenges conventional models in which communities are primarily consulted after programmes have already been designed. Instead, it calls for people with lived experience to participate meaningfully in setting priorities and driving the initiatives intended to improve their health.
From Local Innovation to Public-Sector Scale
While community-driven initiatives can demonstrate significant potential in addressing NCD-related challenges, sustaining and expanding their impact requires more than successful pilot projects.
The WHO report identifies the importance of aligning community innovations with national health priorities while ensuring that governments and other partners provide the institutional support required for wider implementation.
It identifies three priorities for advancing the scale-up of community-driven initiatives:
- Strengthening government capacity and leadership: Public-sector institutions need the capacity, commitment and leadership to recognise promising community innovations and create pathways for their integration into health systems.
- Supporting community innovators: Local innovators require appropriate technical assistance, resources and opportunities to strengthen their solutions and sustain their work.
- Investing in multistakeholder coordination and partnerships: Effective scale-up requires collaboration between governments, community organisations, researchers, civil society, health professionals, financing institutions and other relevant partners.
Importantly, the report emphasises that scaling should happen with communities rather than simply being done to them. Initiatives must remain responsive to the priorities of the people they are intended to serve, even as they expand into new settings.
Advancing Community-Led Approaches to NCD Prevention and Care
Stephen’s involvement in the WHO NCD Labs process reflects his wider work in public health research, NCD prevention, health advocacy and community engagement across Africa. Through his leadership at Stowelink Foundation and engagement in global health policy spaces, he has consistently worked to strengthen the role of communities in shaping responses to non-communicable diseases.
His contribution to the WHO process also connects with an important principle underpinning his advocacy: people living with health conditions should have a meaningful voice in the decisions that affect their lives.
For NCD responses to become more equitable and effective, health systems must recognise that clinical expertise, research evidence and lived experience are complementary sources of knowledge. Bringing these perspectives together can help identify solutions that are not only technically sound but also relevant to the realities of the populations they serve.
The publication of the WHO technical report provides an important resource for governments, public health practitioners, community organisations and health innovators seeking practical approaches to strengthen community participation and scale locally developed solutions.
Read the WHO Technical Report
Local Innovation, System Change: Public-Sector Pathways for Scaling Community-Driven Initiatives
The report is available through the WHO Knowledge Action Portal:
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