Study aimed at strengthening healthcare delivery in Africa launched

Malawi’s Foreign Affairs Minister Nancy Tembo, AFIDEB Executive Director Dr Eliya Zulu ( Both Centre), and Chairperson of the African Union High-Level Panel on Emerging Technologies (APET) Prof. Yaye Gassama alongside other participants, during the launch of the report in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. [PHOTO: HANDOUT]

A study done to strengthen healthcare delivery in Africa was Friday launched on the sideline of the 38th African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

 Dubbed Leveraging Research Prioritisation and Emerging Technologies to Strengthen Healthcare Delivery in Africa, the monograph explores the landscape of emerging technologies for better healthcare delivery in Africa.

It was launched in a side event on harnessing research, innovation, and emerging technologies for a resilient future.

The launch ceremony brought together leaders and experts committed to transforming health systems in Africa through science, technology, and innovation.

Malawi Minister of Foreign Affairs Nancy Tembo, who represented President Lazarus Chakwera at the event, called on the urgency to leverage emerging technologies like AI, drones, and blockchain to strengthen health care.

“We must have the right investments, partnerships, and policies, in order for the continent to advance socioeconomic development, build resilient healthcare systems, and realize the clarion call of Africa We Want,” Tembo said.

African Institute for Development Policy (AFIDEP) Executive Director Dr Eliya Zulu reinforced this call, stressing that Africa’s growing population of 1.5 billion presents both a challenge and an opportunity.

“To harness its demographic dividend, Africa must prioritize science, technology, and innovation (STI), ensuring policies and decisions are backed by evidence-based research,” she said.

AFIDEP is a pan-African organization working with governments in Africa to leverage evidence in decision-making.

The study was a collaboration between the African Institute for Development Policy (AFIDEP), the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) and the African High-Level Panel on Emerging Technologies (APET).

Also present at the launch were Prof. Yaye Gassama, APET Chair; and  Nardos Thomas Bekele, CEO of AUDA-NEPAD.

The report was developed through rigorous desk research, multiple consultations and validation sessions with Africa’s leading scientific and technology experts.

Also involved were representatives of regional economic communities, the African Union Commission, and relevant country-level government officials.

 The report is enriched by country case studies that bring out rich lessons and insights for direct application.

Drawing from the African Union’s guidance, the report covers key technologies with the potential to radically change health outcomes in Africa if well-developed and integrated in healthcare systems.

Areas covered are artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, the Internet of Medical Things, drones, genomic medicine, and genetically-based vector technologies.

The report pays special attention to technologies with the potential to reduce the persisting high numbers of deaths from Malaria, and maternal and newborn health in Africa.

 In addition, the report guides on the governance of bio-specimen and bio-banking in Africa, and, the implementation of the One Health approach on the continent.