New Advisory Group on Surveillance to Boost Africa’s Health Security
Africa is the continent worst affected by disease outbreaks, registering a 40% rise between 2022 and 2024. However, the establishment of the Continental Surveillance Advisory Group (CSAG) is expected to be a game-changer, enhancing disease forecasting, monitoring, identification and reporting – ultimately strengthening Africa’s overall disease surveillance capabilities. The CSAG’s creation was a key outcome […]
New Office Bearers for RETAC and RESCO in Eastern Africa
Two critical bodies in Eastern Africa have renewed their leadershipstepping up health coordination in the region. The leaders were selected among minister and public health leaders from 14 AU Member States who gathered in Djibouti for the 3rd Regional Ministerial Steering Committee (ReSCo) and 7th Regional Technical Advisory Committee (ReTAC) meetings. Djibouti’s Minister of Health, […]
West Africa Reviews Regional Community of Practice Response to Antimicrobial Resistance
West Africa has reviewed a community of practice to foster collaboration, knowledge sharing, and professional development onAntimicrobial Resistance (AMR) as ongoing efforts to coordinate a regional response gather momentum in the region. The collaborative exchange of knowledge and information to enhance learning through peer-to-peer interaction, provide access to diverse perspectives, and facilitate the development of […]
New Warehouses to Strengthen Africa’s Rapid Health Emergency Response
When a public health emergency strikes, every hour counts. Rapid access to medical countermeasures can be the difference between containment and escalation. One of the key pillars of the Africa CDC Supply Chain Framework is strengthening warehousing capacity to enhance emergency preparedness and response through the prepositioning of essential emergency response products. This is being […]
Putting Youths at the Centre of Public Health
Young people in Africa have led powerful advocacy, innovation, and community-level responses during health emergencies such as COVID-19, Ebola, and the ongoing fight against HIV/AIDS. Africa CDC recognizes young people as critical agents of change. With over 65% of Africa’s population under the age of 35, the youths are not just the future—they are central […]
Peer-to-peer Learning on AMR Surveillance Takes South Sudan to South Africa
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), under its mandate as the specialized technical health agency of the African Union Commission, continues to lead continental efforts to mitigate antimicrobial resistance (AMR). As part of this effort, the Africa CDC initiated peer to peer learning exchange among Africa Union Member States to advance […]
Lab Leaders Empowerment Puts Africa CDC’s Vision in Action
A transformative leadership training spearheaded by Africa CDC and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is helping drive Africa CDC’s vision through continuous training of laboratory experts across the continent. The Official Development Assistance (ODA) funded project on International Health Regulations Strengthening Project (IHR _SP) with support from the World Bank gathered thirty-four laboratory professionals […]
Mauritania is Now Better Prepared to Handle Public Health Emergencies
Mauritania Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC) is now better positioned to activate and manage Incident Management System (IMS) for real-world outbreaks,but more skills training in required to further empower the team to respond to threats, a recent training workshop revealed. “The PHEOC and IMS workshop in Mauritania was a success,” said Dr Ahmed Tijani […]
Africa Makes Encouraging Progress Towards Community Health Worker Deployment
In 2017, African Union Heads of State and Government made a strategic commitment to strengthen the health workforce by training and deploying two million community health workers to help close the gap in healthcare provision. Eight years down the line, Africa has managed to deploy half of the intended target. Preliminary findings from the Continental Survey on […]
Joint Action Plans Launched to Tackle Viral Hepatitis in Africa
Considering the general decline in funding for research and development, Africa CDC, in collaboration with the World Hepatitis Alliance (WHA) and the African Viral Hepatitis Action Group (AVHAG), has developed a capacity-buildingprogramme for hepatitis elimination and advocacy. It was from one such gathering, held from 2 to 4 June 2025 in Gabon, that joint national action plans were developed. These plans […]