Africa CDC tasks countries to scale up domestic financing amid global cuts

…says funding cut could push 39 million more Africans into poverty

The Africa Centre for Disease Control (CDC) has tasked leaders of nations in the region to urgently scale up domestic financing as foreign financing shrinks.

The Centre, while reacting to declining development assistance, including the announced 90-day pause in United States foreign aid, warned that Africa could face dire repercussions without urgent intervention.

The Centre projected that these financial constraints could reverse health gains, pushing morbidity and mortality rates back to early 2000s levels. An estimated 2 to 4 million additional deaths per year from preventable and treatable diseases could occur.

According to the Centre, this human toll translates into massive economic losses, costing Africa billions annually and pushing an estimated 39 million more people into poverty.

Read also: Africa CDC moves to strengthen public health in W/Africa

“This is not just an African crisis—it is a global crisis in the making. A shifting global landscape has seen many wealthy nations turning inward, repercussions are dire. This moment must serve as a wake-up call for African leaders to implement innovative financing mechanisms and increase domestic investment in public health”, the Centre stated.

The Centre noted that Africa is currently facing an unprecedented convergence of crises that threaten to undo decades of progress in health security, noting that the number of health emergencies in Africa surged from 153 outbreaks in 2022-2023 to 242 in 2024, raising the risk of another pandemic emerging from the continent.

Africa CDC noted that upon learning of the U.S. funding pause, immediately engaged the administration, advocating for a waiver for life-saving humanitarian assistance. Our intervention secured the waiver, ensuring critical interventions continue.

“But this is only one battle. This moment must serve as a wake-up call for African leaders to implement innovative financing mechanisms and increase domestic investment in public health”, the Centre stressed.