AU looks to future on Africa’s health

By Monica Kayombo, LUSAKA Zambia

The African Union (AU) has called for new strategies to enable countries on the continent to effectively guard against future health crises.

AU Commission chairperson Moussa Mahamat says the continent has not been spared from devastating effects of the novel virus, which has pushed health systems to the limit.

Mahamat said this during the close of a three-day workshop aimed at finding solutions to long-standing health challenges in Africa, including vaccine inequity and weak health systems.

The event was hosted by the AU and Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), This is contained in a statement by the Global Health Strategies media team.

Mahamat said there is need to build a new public health order that can effectively guard against future health crises. “We have great hopes for the future and a historic opportunity to build a new public health order that can effectively guard against future health crises.

This conference is the first step in making this a reality,” Mahamat said. AU’s new public health order calls for continental collaboration to bolster African manufacturing capacity for vaccines, diagnostics and therapeutics; strengthen public health institutions for people-centred care; expand the public health workforce; establish respectful and action-oriented partnerships; and engage with the private sector.

The pillars are part of the continent’s approach to meeting the aspirations of the agenda 2063 – the Africa We Want.

AU champion for domestic health financing Paul Kagame said there is need for renewed commitments by governments and national parliaments to increase domestic financing for health in Africa, a priority of the AU.

“We need to invest much more in national health systems. The ability to implement critical health programmes, including regular mass vaccination campaigns, depends on the quality of national health services and the trust the public have in them,” Kagame, the Rwandan President, said.

Centre for AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA) director Salim Karim, who is among people leading research on the Omicron, explained the variant’s trajectory in South Africa.

Professor Karim emphasised the need to continue trusting and implementing strong public health interventions.

Some scientists were honoured for their contributions to the field of science.