New Collaborating Centre To Unlock Africa's Health Economy

In a decisive move to reshape the continent's health financing landscape, the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD AUDA-NEPAD and Georgetown University have officially launched the Collaborating Centre for Health Market Development. This groundbreaking platform, the first of its kind, seeks to unlock the potential of Africa's health economy through strategic investment, innovation, and greater policy coherence.

The launch event, held in Washington, D.C., brought together an impressive array of government leaders, global health actors, private sector executives, philanthropists, and development finance institutions. Their presence signalled a new era of delivery-focused collaboration, one aimed at strengthening health systems, expanding access to services, and fostering economic resilience across Africa.

Speaking at the launch, Ms Nardos Bekele-Thomas, Chief Executive Officer of AUDA-NEPAD, underscored both the urgency and the immense opportunity embodied in this initiative. "Africa's health sector is not just a site of service delivery-it is a driver of economic transformation," she declared, setting the tone for the discussions that followed.

Dr Donald Kaberuka, Former President of the African Development Bank and current Chair of the Global Fund Board, echoed these sentiments. He acknowledged that while Africa has witnessed pockets of progress in health development, there is an urgent need to scale up efforts. He stressed that the success of this endeavour depends on partnerships grounded firmly in African agency while welcoming robust global collaboration.

The new Centre has been conceived as an agile, cross-sectoral platform designed to drive systemic change. Its work will focus on bringing private capital into health projects by structuring investments and developing project pipelines. It will provide technical support to Ministries of Health and Finance, helping them to integrate health more effectively into national planning and fiscal frameworks. Another key focus area is improving market efficiency through regulatory alignment and pooled procurement strategies. Furthermore, the Centre will serve as a showcase for African innovation in fields such as health diagnostics, digital platforms, and local manufacturing.