Conference aims to significantly advance efforts to strengthen research, innovation and emergency management in Africa.
14 December 2022, Kigali, Rwanda – The 2nd International Conference on Public Health in
Africa (CPHIA 2022), which will be held in Kigali, Rwanda, at the Kigali Convention Centre kicks
off today with African Heads of State, ministers of health, and leading researchers and scientists
scheduled to give remarks during three days of official sessions. The conference, which is
taking place from 13-15 December, is now in its second edition and aims to build on
conversations started at CPHIA 2021, helping to serve as a catalyst for accelerating progress
against the continent’s most significant health challenges and building more resilient health
systems.
CPHIA 2022, hosted by the African Union and Africa Centres for Disease Control and
Prevention (Africa CDC) in partnership with the Government of Rwanda, will include remarks
from several distinguished speakers including Rt. Hon. Édouard Ngirente Prime Minister of the
Republic of Rwanda, Hon. Dr. Yvan Butera, State Minister of Health, Rwanda, Dr. Tedros
Adhanom Ghebreyesus Director-General at the World Health Organization (WHO), Professor
Agnes Binagwaho, CPHIA 2022 Co-chair, Prof. Senait Fisseha, CPHIA 2022 Co-Chair and Dr.
Ahmed Ogwell Ouma, Acting Director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention
(Africa CDC).
“There has been an incredible amount of interest in CPHIA 2022 from across Africa and around
the world. It is clear this conference is needed now more than ever,” said Professor Senait
Fisseha, CPHIA 2022 Co-Chair and Vice President at The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation.
“Last year’s virtual conference, CPHIA 2021, was a tremendous success and this year’s convening we’re excited to build on that for the second edition. We hope to continue using this
extraordinary conference as a platform to elevate and advance African voices and solutions for
years to come.”
CPHIA 2022 will feature nine plenary sessions, 14 parallel sessions, 9 abstract-driven sessions,
a high-level ministerial session and opening and closing ceremonies. There will also be more
than 50 official in-person side events in Kigali beginning on 12 December, plus an additional 10
side events held virtually.
“This conference brings essential conversations about Africa to Africa – conversations on topics
like pandemic preparedness, increasing local vaccine production, tackling infectious and
non-communicable diseases and African leadership in health,”, said Professor Agnes
Binagwaho, CPHIA 2022 Co-chair. “We are grateful to the Africa CDC and our CPHIA 2022
co-hosts the Rwandan Government for bringing us together this year and driving progress
toward the Africa We Want.”
The conference is coming at a critical time when many African countries continue to feel the
impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, which not only exerted enormous pressure on health
systems but also sounded the alarm on the need to reform and revitalize the continent’s health
system. Additionally, the witnessed emergence and re-emergence of infectious disease
outbreaks such as Ebola and the growing burden of Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) further
pose a grave threat to the health and lives of millions in Africa.
“It’s time that countries should collectively invest in stronger health system governance,
including multisectoral collaboration within countries,” said Dr Ahmed Ouma, Ag. Director, Africa
CDC. “Africa CDC has presented its vision of a New Public Health Order, which aims to ensure
that effective health systems exist before a crisis and remain resilient during and post-crisis.
CPHIA 2022 will shine a spotlight on this new approach to public health shaped by local
leadership and regional solutions.”
“Recurrent outbreaks highlight gaps in our health systems,” said Dr Sabin Nsanzimana, Minister
of Health, Rwanda. “CPHIA 2022 is a great opportunity to come together as leaders in the
public health sector and discuss building more resilient systems that will allow our countries to
better respond to emerging health threats while continuing to address long-standing infectious
and non communicable diseases,” he added.
Other leaders expected to participate in the conference include Prof Salim Abdool
Karim, Director, Center for the AIDS Program of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA), Madam
Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director, UNAIDS, Cheikh Oumar Seydi, Director, Africa, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Prof Claude Mambo Muvunyi, Director General for Rwanda
Biomedical Centre (RBC) and Dr Monique Wasunna, Director, Drugs for Neglected Diseases
initiative, Africa Regional Office, among many others.
For additional information about the conference and to register for the event, please visit
www.cphia2022.com.
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Media contacts
Nekerwon Gweh
Communication & Media Engagement, Africa CDC
GwehN@africa-union.org
Chrys P. Kaniki
Senior Technical Officer for Strategic Programs,
AU COVID-19 Vaccination Bingwa Initiative Coordinator
KanikiC@africa-union.org
Ouma Onyango
Manager
Global Health Strategies
oonyango@globalhealthstrategies.com
About Africa CDC
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), is the continental
autonomous Health agency of the African Union that strengthens the capacity and capability of
Africa’s public health institutions as well as partnerships to detect and respond quickly and
effectively to disease threats and outbreaks, based on data-driven interventions and programmes.
Learn more at: http://www.africacdc.org
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