President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, has called on African leaders to shift their perspective on health from being a financial burden to recognising it as a cornerstone of development and sovereignty.
Speaking at a high-level meeting of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) in New York on Monday, Mahama emphasised the urgent need for the continent to invest in resilient health systems.
“Health is not a cost. It is the engine of productivity and the foundation of sovereignty,” he stated, underscoring the importance of sustainable health financing and infrastructure.
The meeting, themed “Securing Africa’s Health Sovereignty: Political Leadership for Sustainable Health Financing, Local Manufacturing, and Pandemic Preparedness,” brought together heads of state, policymakers, and development partners.
It focused on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and strategies to build a more resilient health architecture across Africa.
President Mahama’s remarks come at a time when the continent is working to expand local vaccine manufacturing, secure long-term funding for health, and enhance preparedness for future pandemics.
His call adds to growing demands for Africa to assert greater ownership over its health security and to ensure it is not sidelined in global emergency response efforts.
