Africa Health Forum

Africa Health Forum
Name	Africa Health Forum
Type	Non-governmental network
Founded	2010s
Headquarters	Accra, Ghana
Region served	Africa
Focus	Public health policy, healthcare delivery, health systems strengthening

Africa Health Forum

Africa Health Forum is a continental convening platform that brings together public health actors, research institutions, philanthropic foundations, United Nations agencies, and private-sector companies to address health priorities in sub-Saharan and North Africa. The Forum convenes ministers, researchers, donors, clinicians, and civil society leaders to coordinate responses to epidemics, maternal and child health, noncommunicable diseases, and health systems financing. Its annual meetings and technical working groups link policy processes across capitals such as Addis Ababa, Nairobi, Abuja, Accra, and Cairo.

Overview

Africa Health Forum functions as a multisectoral network that gathers representatives from national health ministries like Ministry of Health (Ghana), regional bodies such as the African Union and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, academic partners like University of Cape Town and Makerere University, and multilateral agencies including World Health Organization and United Nations Children's Fund. Major philanthropic organizations represented include Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Wellcome Trust, and Rockefeller Foundation, while corporate partners have included GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, and Novartis. The Forum hosts thematic tracks covering immunization with groups like Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, emergency preparedness involving Médecins Sans Frontières, and health financing linked to International Monetary Fund and World Bank initiatives.

History and development

The Forum emerged in the early 2010s as a response to lessons from the 2014 West Africa Ebola epidemic and was shaped by outcomes from the Abuja Declaration (2001) discussions and continental commitments such as the African Health Strategy. Its early convenings featured leaders from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and technical contributors from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (United States), London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, and Johns Hopkins University. Subsequent conferences addressed challenges raised by the 2016 Yellow Fever outbreaks, the 2019–20 measles outbreaks in Africa, and the COVID-19 pandemic, bringing together policy-makers from South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Morocco. The Forum also incorporated outputs from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and national strategies influenced by Doctors Without Borders operational research.

Governance and structure

The Forum is governed by a steering committee composed of representatives from the African Union Commission, the Africa CDC, selected national ministries such as Ministry of Health (Nigeria), and partner organizations like World Bank Group, African Development Bank, and European Union. Technical advisory panels draw experts from institutions including Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Karolinska Institutet, Pasteur Institute, KEMRI–Wellcome Trust Research Programme, and Institut Pasteur de Dakar. Secretariat functions have been hosted by regional hubs in cities such as Dakar, Kigali, Lagos, and Durban. The Forum’s charter establishes working groups aligned with international agreements like the International Health Regulations (2005) and coordinates with programs under UNAIDS and UNFPA.

Programs and initiatives

Initiatives include immunization campaigns coordinated with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, epidemic preparedness exercises with World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa, and digital health pilots in partnership with WHO Digital Health Atlas collaborators such as Vodacom, MTN Group, and Microsoft. Maternal and newborn projects link to research from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation-funded teams at University of Oxford and London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, while noncommunicable disease programs reference work by American Heart Association and World Heart Federation. The Forum supports health workforce training tied to Global Health Workforce Alliance models, surgical care initiatives inspired by Lancet Commission on Global Surgery, and antimicrobial resistance efforts aligned with World Organisation for Animal Health and Food and Agriculture Organization actions.

Partnerships and funding

Funding streams combine contributions from multilateral donors like World Bank, regional financiers such as African Development Bank, bilateral partners including United Kingdom Department for International Development and United States Agency for International Development, and philanthropic sources including Wellcome Trust and Gates Foundation. Corporate partnerships have involved Pfizer, Sanofi, and Roche for vaccine access and diagnostics, while implementation partners include PATH, Clinton Health Access Initiative, and ICAP at Columbia University. The Forum leverages grant mechanisms from Global Fund waves and collaborates on implementation science grants with National Institutes of Health and the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership.

Impact and evaluations

Independent evaluations by consulting groups and academic teams from University of Cape Town, Makerere University, and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have examined the Forum’s role in epidemic response coordination during the 2014 Ebola epidemic aftermath and the COVID-19 pandemic vaccine rollout. Reports cite improved cross-border surveillance linked to Africa CDC networks, accelerated policy diffusion through ministries in Ethiopia and Rwanda, and strengthened laboratory networks tied to Institut Pasteur. Critiques reference sustainability concerns similar to debates around Global Fund dependency and call for greater domestic resource mobilization as discussed at the Africa Health Financing Summit and in analyses by the International Monetary Fund and OECD. Independent case studies highlight successful collaborations with Gavi-supported national immunization programs in Senegal and Ghana and operational research partnerships with MSF in outbreak settings.

Category:Health in Africa