African Ministers Launch WHO Africa Regional Health Forum in Lusaka

LUSAKA, 25 August 2025 – African ministers of health today opened the Seventy-fifth Session of the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Committee for Africa in Zambia’s capital, marking the start of high-level deliberations on the continent’s most pressing health challenges.

The meeting, running from 25–27 August, brings together health ministers from the 47 Member States of the WHO African Region. Over three days, leaders will endorse key resolutions aimed at strengthening health systems, closing critical gaps, and improving the well-being of millions across Africa.

Opening the session, Zambia’s President Hakainde Hichilema stressed the importance of lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, urging countries to harness health diplomacy to address inequalities. He called for positioning health as “a driver of regional trade and industrialization” and for harmonizing public health regulations across Africa.

“We need collaboration and a commitment to humanity in making decisions that enhance health and well-being across the region,” President Hichilema said.

Zambia’s Minister of Health, Dr Elijah Muchima, echoed the call for unity:

“The complexities of today’s health threats demand that we stand united. No single nation can overcome these challenges in isolation. We must deepen collaboration, share best practices, harness African expertise and innovation, and build long-term resilience across borders.”

WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the session comes at a pivotal moment:

“Our goal is clear: to support Member States in Africa to build robust national health systems, grounded in self-reliance, efficacy and a commitment to deliver health for all.”

Similarly, Dr Mohamed Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa, urged governments to see health as a foundation of prosperity rather than a cost:

“We must build systems that are efficient, inclusive and sovereign, and place people – especially the most vulnerable – at the centre of every policy, programme and partnership.”

Key Issues on the Agenda

Over the next three days, ministers are expected to:

• Adopt a resolution on oral health, aiming to ensure access to improved services by 2030.

• Address chronic blood shortages, with new plans to modernize supply systems and boost voluntary blood donations.

• Expand rehabilitation services, which remain out of reach for two-thirds of Africans in need.

• Transform care for women, children and adolescents, as the region still accounts for 70% of global maternal deaths.

• Review strategies to fight malaria and close Africa’s health workforce gap, currently less than half the global standard.

• Strengthen health security, with new measures for early detection and crisis preparedness after more than 250 public health events were recorded in 2024.

Decisions taken in Lusaka this week are expected to set Africa’s health agenda for the next decade, laying the foundation for stronger systems, healthier communities, and a more resilient continent.