Africa’s repeated exclusion from timely access to vaccines, diagnostics and treatments during major health emergencies—including the COVID-19 pandemic and recent mpox, Marburg virus disease and Ebola outbreaks—has demonstrated the urgent need for the continent to build its own end-to-end research and development (R&D) capacity.
Reliance on external suppliers and international research partnerships has left Africa vulnerable to global supply chain disruptions and delayed access to life-saving medical countermeasures.
As global development assistance declines and geopolitical competition reshapes healthcare supply chains, Africa must move beyond partnership-led research toward continent-led, regionally coordinated R&D ecosystems that integrate basic research, product development, clinical trials and local manufacturing.
In a commentary, a group of scientists on Africa has proposed the Africa Continental R&D Framework to provide a renewed, continent-wide strategy for strengthening Africa’s health R&D capacity. Led by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) in collaboration with partners, the initiative aims to strengthen Africa’s pandemic preparedness, improve health security, and accelerate progress toward universal health coverage through expanded local manufacturing.
Read More | https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-026-04480-w
