Africa is facing a mathematical impossibility that threatens to dismantle decades of public health progress. As the continents leaders prepare to gather in Addis Ababa for the AU Heads of State Summit, a coalition of Civil Society Organisations CSOs is blowing the whistle on a looming fiscal cliff. Over the past 4 years, Official Development Assistance ODA to Africa contracted by 70 percent, the largest decline in recent history. Simultaneously, the continent has seen a 41 percent surge in disease outbreaks. While the threats are multiplying, the chequebook is closing.
On 5 February 2026, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation AHF Africa , in collaboration with AfricaREACH, WACI Health, an African regional advocacy organisation, and Resilience Action Network Africa RANA, an independent African CSO advocacy network, will convene a high-level webinar to address the '17 Question'. Currently, total health spending across many African nations averages just 17 per person per year. The minimum required for essential services? 60.
'We cannot beg our way out of a 43 per person deficit,' says Dr Penninah Lutung , the AHF Executive Vice President . 'With donor priorities shifting and assistance declining, Africa must pivot from reliance to sovereignty. This isn't just about health its about continental security.' Rosemary Mburu, the Executive Director of WACI Health, adds, 'With a 41 percent surge in outbreaks and a 70 percent drop in aid, Africa can no longer remain a passenger in its own survival. We are demanding that the communities most affected by health crises lead the policy decisions that define our future.'
