With external health aid to Africa expected to plunge by 70% between 2021 and 2025, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has launched a continent-wide strategy to radically transform how health systems are financed, putting African resources at the centre of African health.
The sharp decline in official development assistance, paired with a 41% surge in disease outbreaks from 2022 to 2024, is overwhelming already stretched health systems. Without urgent reform, the continent risks losing decades of hard-won progress in disease control, maternal care, and epidemic preparedness.
Africa CDC’s response is deliberate and strategic. In collaboration with African Union Member States, the agency will guide efforts to revise national health financing plans, strengthen domestic investment in health, and pilot innovative, context-specific revenue mechanisms designed to mobilise sustainable and predictable funding.
“Africa cannot continue outsourcing its health security,” said Dr. Jean Kaseya, Director General of Africa CDC. “This strategy is not about aid—it’s about ownership. We are building a future where Africa invests in its people, drives its own health agenda, and responds to crises with speed, strength, and self-reliance.”
The strategy urges governments to fulfil the Abuja Declaration by allocating at least 15% of national budgets to health. It also introduces innovative financing ideas such as solidarity levies on airline tickets, alcohol, and mobile services, while exploring how Africa’s US$95 billion in annual diaspora remittances can support national health priorities. Blended finance tools will be used to unlock public and private capital for critical investments in infrastructure, digital health, and local production of vaccines and medical supplies.
Implementation will be phased. The first phase (2025–2026) will focus on updating national health financing plans in 30 countries, piloting innovative revenue mechanisms, and launching transparency dashboards. The second phase (2026–2030) will scale successful approaches, with the goal of enabling at least 20 countries to finance 50 percent or more of their health budgets through sustainable domestic sources.
To track results and ensure accountability, Africa CDC will deploy a new African Health Financing Scorecard to monitor progress, improve donor alignment, and boost efficiency in domestic spending.
The strategy marks a critical turning point for Africa’s health independence. With political momentum from the African Union and proven regional coordination mechanisms, Africa CDC is positioning itself and the continent to lead a new era of sustainable, sovereign health financing.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).
