AU Convenes First Extraordinary Health Summit in Accra; Kaseya Presses for Health ‘Sovereignty’
By Atlantic Digest Africa Desk | Friday 24 July, 2026
African leaders, health ministers and international development partners gathered in Accra, Ghana, this week for the African Union’s first Extraordinary Summit on Health, marking a landmark effort to strengthen the continent’s health systems amid declining foreign aid and growing public health challenges.
Held on July 21–22, the summit adopted a new declaration aimed at accelerating the African Union’s health roadmap to 2030 under the theme of advancing justice, equity and universal health coverage.
The meeting brought together heads of state, finance ministers, health ministers and representatives of regional and international organisations to chart a coordinated strategy for improving healthcare delivery across Africa.
Among the key priorities endorsed were renewed efforts to eliminate AIDS and tuberculosis, reduce maternal and infant mortality, strengthen preparedness for future disease outbreaks and tackle the growing burden of non-communicable diseases, including cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular illnesses.
Addressing delegates, Dr Jean Kaseya, Director-General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), urged African governments to pursue what he described as health sovereignty by financing and strengthening their own healthcare systems rather than relying heavily on external donors.
Dr Kaseya argued that more than half of health-sector resources are lost through fraud, corruption, poor planning, procurement inefficiencies and the persistence of “ghost workers” on government payrolls. He said eliminating such leakages would significantly improve healthcare delivery without requiring proportionate increases in public spending.
Warning that international development assistance continues to decline, he called on African governments to increase domestic investment in health, improve accountability and build resilient systems capable of responding to future emergencies.
Separately, Dr Kaseya appealed to the United States to lift its Ebola-related travel restrictions on Uganda, arguing that the country has recorded no new Ebola cases and no longer presents the level of public health risk that justified the measures.
The summit concluded with renewed commitments to deepen regional cooperation, strengthen disease surveillance, expand local pharmaceutical manufacturing and accelerate progress toward universal health coverage as African countries seek greater self-reliance in safeguarding the health of their populations.
