Ghana will host a landmark Africa Health Sovereignty Summit in Accra on Tuesday, August 5, 2025, under the leadership of President John Dramani Mahama.
The summit will bring together African Heads of State, policymakers, and global health stakeholders in a bold effort to reimagine global health governance and assert Africa’s leadership in shaping its health future.
The summit, themed “The Accra Initiative: African Health Sovereignty in a Reimagined Global Health Governance Architecture,” aims to spark a new era where African nations lead the charge in building resilient, equitable, and self-sustaining health systems.
According to a statement signed by Felix Kwakye Ofosu, Spokesperson to the President and Minister for Government Communications, the summit is being convened to respond to the urgent need for health governance reforms that reflect current geopolitical, economic, and demographic realities.
He further stated that although the world has witnessed significant progress in global health with child mortality halved since 1990, maternal deaths reduced by over 40% since 2000, and HIV/AIDS deaths halved since 2010 these gains are under serious threat.
Shifting global power dynamics, weakening multilateralism, declining donor funding, and the rise of new health challenges have revealed deep structural flaws in the current global health system.
“The current global health governance framework designed in a different era no longer adequately reflects today’s political, economic, or demographic realities,” the statement read. It emphasised that African countries must take greater responsibility for their health governance and financing while advocating for global reforms that are more inclusive and representative.
As part of the outcomes of the summit, delegates will formally endorse The Accra Initiative, an ambitious and action-driven roadmap that lays out principles and benchmarks for overhauling global health governance in alignment with national priorities.
Among the key deliverables are:
- The creation of a Presidential High-Level Panel to develop a reform agenda for global health governance.
- The launch of the SUSTAIN Initiative, a new drive to promote country-led and investment-driven health systems using domestic resources, private sector involvement, and philanthropic partnerships.
- A commitment to core values such as inclusivity, leadership, accountability, resilience, and sustainable funding.
- The endorsement of the Accra Compact, which outlines Africa’s shared vision for health sovereignty and a more equitable global health order.
The statement further noted that this effort builds on the work of leaders like President Paul Kagame of Rwanda and institutions of the African Union that have long advocated for better continental health coordination and financing.
