Latest news with #NPHI
The Star
3 days ago
- Health
- The Star
Africa CDC urges countries to strengthen public health systems
HARARE, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) on Wednesday urged African countries to bolster their public health systems in preparation for future pandemics and health threats. Speaking at the opening of the Fourth Annual Southern Africa National Public Health Institute (NPHI) Meeting held in the Zimbabwean capital of Harare on Wednesday, Africa CDC Regional Director Lul Riek said pandemics such as COVID-19, Marburg virus and mpox exposed weaknesses in the continent's health mechanisms, policies and interventions, hence the need for Africa to build robust public health systems. "Based on the lessons that we have learned, it is necessary for every country in Africa to have a functional, operational NPHI," Riek said, adding that the capacity gaps identified during the previous pandemics led the Africa CDC to formulate a new public health order to prepare Africa for future pandemics and health threats. According to Riek, the new public health order hinges on five pillars, namely strengthening NPHIs, expanding local manufacturing, enhancing the public health workforce, increasing domestic health financing, and fostering action-oriented partnerships. "Our ultimate goal is to ensure that all 55 African Union members have functional NPHIs capable of driving progress toward a healthier, more resilient Africa," Riek said, noting that NPHIs play a vital role in promoting health, preventing disease, and protecting populations. He told Xinhua in a follow-up interview that 10 out of the 16 Southern African Development Community members have functional NPHIs and urged remaining countries, including Zimbabwe, to establish the institutes. Desta Tiruneh, the World Health Organization (WHO) representative for Zimbabwe, noted that NPHIs are crucial in bolstering the resilience of Africa's public health systems amid declining external funding for the health sector. "NPHIs have a pivotal role to play. As national centers of public health expertise and coordination, their role in research, training, capacity building, and emergency response coordination is indispensable," said Tiruneh, reaffirming the WHO's support to African countries in building resilient and sustainable public health systems.
Zawya
29-04-2025
- Health
- Zawya
Health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Hon. Aden Duale Hosts World Health Organization (WHO) Africa Acting Regional Director for Bilateral Talks
Health Cabinet Secretary Hon. Aden Duale today held bilateral discussions with the World Health Organization (WHO) Acting Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, who paid him a courtesy call at his office. The talks focused on sustainable responses to Kenya's multiple and complex public health emergencies, including Mpox, Cholera, Kala-azar, Polio, and Measles, which continue to exert pressure on the healthcare system. The meeting also reviewed progress on the operationalization of the Kenya National Public Health Institute (NPHI), a key body coordinating disease surveillance, emergency preparedness, and response. WHO reaffirmed its commitment to support the NPHI in alignment with its public health mandate. Hon. Duale appreciated WHO's longstanding support to Kenya's health sector and called for enhanced collaboration in emergency logistics and supplies, health worker training and capacity building, as well as community-based surveillance and risk communication. These areas are crucial to advancing the Universal Health Coverage agenda. The CS was joined by Principal Secretary for Medical Services Dr. Ouma Oluga, Director General for Health Dr. Patrick Amoth, Ag. DG, NPHI Dr Maureen Kamene and Dr. Stephen K. Muleshe, Senior Deputy Director, Office of International Health Relations, MOH. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Health, Kenya.
Zawya
14-02-2025
- Health
- Zawya
$1.6million Allocated to Nine National Public Health Institutes Centers of Excellence
The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has set aside $1.6million for nine newly designated National Public Health Institutes (NPHIs) across Africa as regional Centers of Excellence. 'As a Center of Excellence, your NPHI will serve as a regional hub for peer-to-peer technical assistance, training, and mentorship. It will also support Member States in developing or strengthening core NPHI functions, including disease surveillance, outbreak response, public health research, and workforce development,' said Africa CDC Director General, Dr Jean Kaseya, in a letter to the selected organisations on 31 January 2025. The selection of institutes in Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Africa and Rwanda follows a rigorous assessment of NPHIs across Africa and aligns with Africa CDC's mission to enhance disease control policies and strengthen public health capacities in Member States. The agency has allocated $1.6million for equipment and training to the Centres across the continent. 'We are planning different types of support, but this year we will be equipping them to start National Data Management Centres. We will be procuring servers and computer software, including training,' said Haftom Taame, Principal Technical Officer, Public Health Institutes and Research at Africa CDC. NPHIs from Mozambique, Liberia and Burundi will be prioritized in 2025 to get ISO 9001 accreditation to improve operational efficiency through streamlined processes. Starting in the second quarter of this year, Taame said Africa CDC, working with the European CDC, will be twinning, the Centers of Excellence with European NPHIs so they can learn from best experience. As part of strengthening the NPHI's, we will also focus on leadership and management- a continuation of what the Centre of Public Health started last year, supporting seven countries. This year, four rounds of training will be conducted to build leadership and management capacity of NPHIs across the continent. 'We will help them to build capacities for the essential public health functions including research, surveillance and information system, emergency response coordination, workforce development and corporate governance and leadership. 'Once we establish these Centres, they will support regional Member States in their respective regions to establish NPHI's and build their capacities,' Taame said, adding that it is not easy for Africa CDC to serve all member states from its headquarters in Addis Ababa. Taame said the biggest challenge in managing health security in Africa is the fragmented approach to outbreaks and infections. In many countries, core public health functions are handled by different departments or agencies, he said. 'For example, surveillance is managed in one place, response is handled elsewhere, and the lab is in another centre. These entities are not linked to the department that responds to the outbreak or the lab that detects the infection to coordinate the response,' he said. Dr. Dougbeh Chris Nyan, Director General of the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), welcomed the decision to designate his institution as a Center of Excellence. 'This recognition is a testament to the dedication of our public health professionals. As a Center of Excellence, we will continue leading efforts in disease surveillance, emergency response, and capacity building for the African continent,' he said. NPHIL's selection as a Center of Excellence marks a significant milestone for Liberia, a country that has faced major public health challenges, including the 2014–2016 Ebola outbreak and the COVID-19 pandemic. Besides supporting regional Centers of Excellence, an Africa CDC performance review held in Arusha, Tanzania, in January 2025, noted delays in the legal process of Member States establishing NPHIs as autonomous institutions. The review also highlighted a lack of top leadership commitment, insufficient resources to operationalise newly established NPHIs, and inadequate staffing to run all programmes within the Centers. The meeting recommended facilitating high-level advocacy efforts targeting parliamentarians, relevant sectors, and key partners. It also called for strengthening country engagement, mobilizing resources through strategic partnerships, and fast- tracking staff recruitment and contract issuance. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).
