AFRICAN countries have been urged to collectively invest in stronger health system governance, including multi-sectoral collaboration within countries.
Dr Ahmed Ouma, the Acting Director, Africa CDC made the remarks on Tuesday during opening of the 2nd International Conference on Public Health in Africa (CPHIA 2022), being held in Rwanda’s Capital, Kigali from December 13th-15th.
“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 revitalise the continent’s health system,” Dr Ouma stated.
He added: “the witnessed emergence and re-emergence of infectious disease outbreaks such as Ebola and the growing burden on non-communicable 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 multi-sectoral collaboration within countries,” he hinted.
Prof Senait Fisseha, CPHIA 2022 Co-Chair and Vice President at The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, on the other hand, explained that there has been an incredible amount of interest in CPHIA 2022 from across Africa and around the world.
“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, “he said.
Rwanda Health Minister, Dr Sabin Nsanzimana explained that recurrent outbreaks highlight gaps in health systems.
“The 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,” Dr Nsanzimana added.
Reports from Kigali said the conference has aimed, among other things, 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.
