Africa braces for health emergencies

Africa records over 200 health emergencies annually, highlighting the urgent need to strengthen prevention, preparedness, and rapid response systems across the continent.

The rising frequency and complexity of outbreaks  -  from cholera and climate-related disasters to emerging infectious diseases  -  have exposed gaps in national health systems and underscored the need for stronger continental coordination and expanded local manufacturing capacity.

Speaking at the official opening of the African Volunteers Health Corps induction workshop for southern Africa in Harare, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention head of emergency preparedness and response Wessam Mankoula emphasized that volunteers must be prepared to support countries when outbreaks exceed national capacity.

"One of the key lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic is the importance of building resilient national and continental systems. We need national capacity capable of responding quickly and efficiently to emergencies and stronger collaboration between member States," Mankoula said.

He noted that African solidarity becomes critical when emergencies overwhelm a country's capacity. "Neighbouring countries and continental organisations like Africa CDC can mobilise resources quickly to support response efforts," he said.

Mankoula also highlighted the need to strengthen local manufacturing for vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics to reduce reliance on external suppliers during crises.

Douglas Mombeshora, Zimbabwe's Health and Child Care Minister, said the continent continues to face increasingly complex public health emergencies, natural disasters, and humanitarian crises.

"We have recurrent cholera outbreaks, climate-related disasters displacing families, cross-border disease transmission challenging our surveillance systems, and shocks straining already burdened health infrastructures. These realities demand coordinated, rapid, and technically sound action, not fragmented or delayed responses," Mombeshora said.

He described the workshop as more than training, representing readiness translated into action. "Effective emergency response requires technical knowledge as well as understanding emergency coordination, incident management, logistics, supply chains, risk communication, ethics, safety, and security," he said.

Mombeshora added that Africa is building end-to-end capacity  -  from early detection to decisive response  -  led and sustained by African institutions. "The protection of our people's health is not only a technical priority but a core pillar of development, stability, and dignity," he said.

The workshop brought together about 75 public health professionals from across southern Africa to strengthen regional health security. The African Volunteers Health Corps is designed to bolster surge capacity across member States by rapidly mobilising trained health professionals to support countries during public health emergencies and humanitarian crises.