Launch remarks · 23 September 2024
Your Excellency Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Honourable Ministers, Commissioners & Heads of AU Organs, Distinguished participants of the Boma.
We stand at a historic moment as the nations gather in New York, reflecting on our shared future on this planet. The Pact signed at the Summit of the Future recognises our collective responsibility to break free from historical constraints and offer hope to the next generation.
For Africa, the future is closely tied to our past. Our continent has often been at the forefront of global struggles, and the recent pandemic reminded us of our resilience. Yet, we must move beyond surviving crises and take deliberate steps towards shaping our future.
To do this, we must stop relying on external aid and the uncertain priorities of other regions when it comes to crucial issues such as healthcare. The health of our people, the vitality of our youth, and the very foundations of our societies depend on it.
Africa can no longer depend on traditional multilateral resource mobilisation systems, which have often failed to deliver. We must build our own financing models for key areas such as health innovation and food security.
The global economic framework remains a relic of a bygone era, forcing some regions to continually restart from zero, if not negative. Our generation’s responsibility is to break free from this cycle and create a new path, one that gives us the agency to drive our development.
As the African Union Champion for Institutional Reform, I am committed to asking the hard questions about how our continent can attract investment in social sectors like healthcare. I am also dedicated to working with all of you to find the answers.
It is heartening to see partnerships emerge that promise to equip every African with an AI-powered Digital Health Wallet and each African country with the tools to attract biopharma research and produce medicines, vaccines, and medical devices locally. Initiatives like PanaBIOS, ProPer, and the Purpose Africa Clinical Research Program stand as milestones in Africa’s journey toward becoming a global innovation powerhouse.
However, none of this can be sustained without rethinking how we fund these initiatives. Africa’s rise depends on ensuring our continent has access to capital that can build the health infrastructure we need.
I want to recognise the efforts of AUDA-NEPAD in developing the Program for Investment and Financing in Africa’s Health (PIFAH). Alongside AU agencies, AfroChampions, and Purpose Africa, PIFAH is laying the groundwork for unlocking vast resources from the private sector.
I commend the African Union's AUDA-NEPAD for laying the groundwork with the Program for Investment and Financing in Africa's Health Sector (PIFAH). As this program advances, with the support of AfroChampions, the Corporate Council for Africa, and other partners, I assure you of my unwavering support. I believe my fellow African leaders share this commitment, and we will work to unlock private sector resources to ensure its success.
Distinguished participants of the Boma, I trust that this gathering will galvanise us all to focus on these critical issues and the opportunities that lie ahead for Africa.
With that, I am honoured to formally launch the Program for Investment and Financing in Africa’s Health (PIFAH). Thank You.