28 Aug 2023

African heads of state have been commended for working closely with the Africa Center for Disease Control (CDC) to strengthen national response capacity.

Welcoming delegates at the 73rd session of World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Committee for Africa in Gaborone this morning, WHO Africa Regional Director, Dr Matshidiso Moeti applauded heads of state for their contribution to achieve health for all in Africa.

Dr Moeti highlighted that on May 5, WHO ended the global emergency status for the COVID-19 pandemic, and that paved a way as countries rapidly expanded their genomic sequencing capacity, noting that it was a legacy that would address numerous other diagnostic needs.

Quoting the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, who stated that, “the African continent’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic has provided valuable lessons for the rest of the world,” Dr Moeti said the African Medicines Agency was all set to get practically established.

She said it was ‘a special cause for celebration in Africa,’ as the agonising struggle to obtain sufficient supplies of key items for the response was no doubt unforgettable for governments and partners working with them.

Dr Moeti pointed out that the number of COVID-19 deaths in Africa was much less than predicted, saying however the health, education systems and economies took a big hit from the COVID-19 pandemic.

She said there was disruption in the delivery of routine immunization services that resulted in a significantly reduced number of children being vaccinated, and an increasing number of outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases.

She nevertheless said WHO was working with member states in the African region to boost their pandemic preparedness response capacity from the community level.

Dr Moeti noted that there was also the implementation of three WHO African Region flagship programmes, PROSE (Promoting Resilience of Systems for Emergencies, TASS (Transforming African Surveillance Systems) and SURGE (Strengthening and Utilising Response Groups for Emergencies) aimed at building national capacity to monitor and respond to risks across the continent.

Furthermore, she said at global level, an intergovernmental body was negotiating and drafting an international instrument on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.

A working group, she said had also been set up to amend the International Health Regulations to ensure a fit-for-purpose instrument.

She therefore called on all African member states to actively participate in the global discussions and negotiations, saying that would ensure that the needs of the African region were adequately addressed.

Meanwhile, Dr Moeti also hailed Botswana for registering important progress towards the national vision of A Healthy Nation by 2023.

She said the mother-to-child HIV transmission had been reduced to less than five per cent, making Botswana the first high-burden country in the world to achieve such a milestone.

She further said the HIV transmission rates had fallen from 40 per cent of the sexually active age group in 1999, to below one per cent this year. “What an achievement for a nation that once had the highest HIV prevalence rate in the world,” said Dr Moeti, adding that she was gratified by the progress registered over the years.

She commended President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi for his personal commitment to strengthening the health sector’s contribution to the national economy by investing in science, research, innovation and public-private partnerships, within his Reset Agenda. ENDS