Presidents Mahama, Tshisekedi to lead Health Financing summit in Accra on Dec 3

President John Dramani Mahama and the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Felix Tshisekedi, will on Wednesday, December 3, lead a high-level summit in Accra on Regional Health Leadership and Sustainable Financing for Africa. This will be done right after the opening of the International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA 2025).

The summit is organised by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Global Public Health Institute and the Society for AIDS in Africa (SAA). A statement issued by the AHF in Accra on Monday said the meeting aligned with the Africa CDC’s New Public Health Order and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.

It is expected to galvanise African-led solutions to strengthen continental health systems, enhance domestic financing, and promote regional manufacturing to improve preparedness for future health emergencies. It is expected to bring together heads of state, ministers of health and finance, development partners, civil society groups, parliamentarians, and private sector leaders to discuss how to sustain pandemic prevention efforts.

The statement said discussions at the summit would draw on lessons from Africa’s decades-long HIV response to help shape more sustainable pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response frameworks across the continent. Dr Jorge Saavedra, Executive Director, AHF Global Public Health Institute, said sustained health financing and stronger regional production capacity were essential for Africa’s long-term health security.

“Sustainable health financing and regional production are not just political priorities, are imperatives for Africa’s health security and prosperity,” he was quoted as saying. The summit underscores the need for bold leadership, innovative financing, and cross-sector collaboration to secure the continent’s health future.

It will include a presidential fireside chat featuring Ghana’s President Mahama and DRC President Tshisekedi. Ghana’s Minister of Health, Mr Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, will introduce the session, which will be moderated by Dr Michel Sidibé, African Union Special Envoy for the African Medicines Agency.

A ministerial dialogue on sustainable and innovative health financing will also feature health leaders from Nigeria, South Africa, and Benin and the DRC, alongside the Director-General of Africa CDC, Dr Jean Kaseya, and Ghana’s Minister of Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson. Another session on regional production, leadership and community engagement would bring together experts from the WHO Regional Office for Africa, the International Vaccine Institute, Kenya’s KELIN, and academia.

That would be co-moderated by Prof. Morenike Ukpong of the Society for AIDS in Africa, and Dr Benjamin Djoudalbaye of the Africa CDC. After that, an HIV advocate, Doreen Moraa Moracha, will deliver a call-to-action statement to close the summit.

The statement said the AHF would also host two fireside chats sessions at its exhibition booth during the ICASA. “On December 4, a panel led by Dr Iutung and Dr Saavedra will discuss strategies to strengthen Africa’s health security through regional leadership and sustainable financing,” it said. The statement said the second session on December 6 will focus on the importance of a prevention-first approach in HIV and STI control, balancing biomedical interventions with behavioural strategies such as condom use and community-led education.

ICASA 2025 is expected to attract thousands of participants from across Africa and beyond, centred on advancing the continental HIV response and strengthening broader health systems.