Africa CDC invites scientists and public health experts to submit their work and help shape the scientific programme as the continent moves from health dependency to ownership, resilience and sovereignty
ADDIS ABABA, 12 August 2026 – Africa’s public health story is entering a new chapter, shaped by stronger African institutions, African science, local capability and a growing determination to set the continent’s own health agenda.
That ambition will be at the centre of the 5th International Conference on Public Health in Africa (CPHIA 2026), convened by Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) from 23 to 27 November 2026.
This week, Africa CDC is calling on the scientific and public health community to help shape CPHIA 2026 in two ways: by submitting abstracts for presentation at the conference and by applying to serve as abstract reviewers. Researchers, scientists, public health practitioners and implementers from Africa and beyond are invited to bring forward new evidence, innovations and experience, while qualified experts are encouraged to contribute to the rigorous review process that will help determine the scientific programme.
Together, the calls for abstracts and reviewers mark an important step in the build-up to CPHIA 2026 and open a wider conversation about the evidence, ideas and solutions that should shape the next chapter of African public health.
Under the theme “Africa’s Health Security and Sovereignty: Transformation from Health Dependency and Vulnerability to Ownership and Resilience,” CPHIA 2026 comes at a consequential moment for the continent.
Africa is confronting outbreaks and other public health emergencies while navigating tighter health financing, climate pressures and persistent gaps in access to essential health services. At the same time, a different story is taking shape: stronger continental and national institutions, expanding African research and innovation, growing local manufacturing, a new generation of public health leaders and communities demanding a greater role in decisions that affect their health.
CPHIA 2026 will bring these strands together.
Ready to Lead. Ready to Respond. Ready to Protect. Ready to Prevent.
The conference will bring political leadership into conversation with science, communities, young people, health workers, innovators, civil society and the private sector, with a clear focus on moving from commitments to the systems, investments and capabilities Africa needs to protect its people.
H.E. Dr Jean Kaseya, Director General of Africa CDC, said:
“Africa is defining the public health future it wants and building the institutions, knowledge and capabilities to deliver it. CPHIA 2026 is where we bring that ambition together. We want an Africa that can lead, respond, protect and prevent, and that has the confidence and capacity to take ownership of its health security.”
The science that will shape the conversation
The call for abstracts provides researchers and practitioners with an opportunity to bring new evidence, implementation experience and innovation into the continental conversation. Selected work will contribute to a scientific programme designed to connect research with the policy and practice decisions shaping public health across Africa.
Alongside this, the abstract review process will help determine the scientific work presented at CPHIA 2026 and ensure that the conference reflects strong evidence, practical experience and emerging thinking from across Africa and beyond.
Africa CDC is therefore inviting both abstract submissions and applications from qualified experts to serve as reviewers, strengthening the scientific programme from both sides of the process: the generation of knowledge and the rigorous assessment of the evidence presented.
Professor Yemane Berhane, Co-Chair of the CPHIA 2026 Scientific Programme Committee, said:
“Africa is producing knowledge, evidence and innovation that should increasingly shape public health decisions on the continent and beyond. Our responsibility is to ensure that CPHIA 2026 brings the strongest of that work to the forefront. A rigorous and diverse scientific review process will help us identify the research and practical experience with the greatest potential to influence policy, improve programmes and strengthen health outcomes across Africa.”
Professor Yemane Berhane is the co-founder and Director of the Addis Continental Institute of Public Health (ACIPH) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
A new public health story, led from Africa
CPHIA was created as a space where Africa could convene around its own public health priorities.
In 2026, that proposition carries greater urgency.
The conversation on health sovereignty will move beyond aspiration to the practical questions of how Africa finances its health priorities, produces more of what it needs, strengthens its institutions, develops and retains its workforce, generates its own evidence and builds systems capable of responding before crises escalate.
It is a conversation about leadership and readiness.
Over the coming months, Africa CDC will use the road to CPHIA 2026 to bring that conversation to governments, scientists, communities, young people, media and partners across the continent.
Further announcements on the scientific programme, speakers, partnerships and participation will follow.
Media enquiries: communications@africacdc.org
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Abstract Submission Deadline: September 15, 2026
