Africa: Take Ownership of Health Systems, African Countries Told

Arusha — THE World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Director for Africa, Professor Mohamed Janabi, has urged African countries to take greater ownership of their health systems and move from conference commitments to concrete action in financing and strengthening primary healthcare.

Prof Janabi said governments must lead health-sector development, while development partners align their support with national priorities to build resilient systems capable of delivering sustainable results.

He made the remarks in Arusha yesterday at the International Conference on Primary Health Care, officially opened by Prime Minister Dr Mwigulu Nchemba on behalf of President Samia Suluhu Hassan.

He commended Tanzania for strengthening primary healthcare through measures including the Universal Health Insurance Act, direct financing of health facilities and sustained investment in frontline services.

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"These are not models to copy blindly. They are proof that African leadership, adapted to national realities, can deliver results," Prof Janabi said.

He said Africa needed to shift from dependency to health sovereignty and from fragmented projects to nationally owned systems.

"Countries must lead, partners must align and systems must deliver," he said. Prof Janabi challenged the conference to produce a clear and measurable action plan, which he proposed should be known as the Arusha Call to Action, containing specific commitments, responsibilities and implementation timelines.

He said the success of the conference should be judged by practical improvements in communities rather than the number of resolutions adopted.

"When we meet again at the third conference, let us not ask how many resolutions we adopted. Let us ask: Are more health workers serving our communities? Are medicines available when needed? Are outbreaks being detected early? Are fewer families being pushed into poverty because of illness?" he said.

Prof Janabi called for increased financing of frontline services and urged governments to ensure trained health workers were matched with funded positions.

He also advocated stronger communitybased disease surveillance, greater use of health data and meaningful community participation in shaping health systems.

"Africa does not need solutions. What we need is the courage to finance them, the discipline to implement them and accountability to sustain them," he said.

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He said the time for making promises had passed, urging countries to build primary healthcare systems capable of responding to routine health needs as well as emergencies.

"Let Arusha be remembered not as another conference where Africa described the future, but as the place where Africa chose to build it," he said.