By Celestine Avi
Ghana will host a high-level summit on Tuesday, August 5, 2025, bringing together African Heads of State, policymakers, and global health actors to push for a bold reimagining of global health governance. The Africa Health Sovereignty Summit, convened by President John Dramani Mahama, seeks to place African leadership at the heart of a renewed and equitable global health architecture, rooted in national ownership and sustainable investment.
Under the theme “African Health Sovereignty in a Reimagined Global Health Governance Architecture,” the Africa Health Sovereignty Summit, dubbed: “The Accra Initiative”, marks a pivotal moment in Africa’s quest to redefine its role in shaping global health policy.
Convened by President John Dramani Mahama, the summit comes amid rising calls for a radical overhaul of existing global health systems, which many leaders argue no longer reflect current geopolitical, economic, or demographic realities.
Despite remarkable gains in global health over the past decades, such as halved child mortality since 1990 and reduced HIV/AIDS deaths by 50% since 2010, emerging challenges such as reduced donor funding, weakened multilateralism, and shifting global priorities have exposed deep flaws in the global health governance model.
“The time has come for Africa to take charge of its health destiny—not in isolation, but through determined, coordinated action,” President Mahama declared, ahead of the summit. “This is our moment to lead not just in financing our systems, but in reshaping the very rules that govern global health.”
The Summit is expected to adopt the Accra Initiative, a bold, action-oriented roadmap that establishes new benchmarks, shared principles, and clear priorities for reforming global health governance. Key deliverables include:
A Presidential High-Level Panel to craft a roadmap for a reimagined health governance architecture.
The SUSTAIN Initiative, aimed at building resilient, investment-driven health systems led by African countries and supported by domestic resources, philanthropy, private sector partnerships, and technical expertise.
The Accra Compact, which outlines Africa’s unified vision for health sovereignty and global equity.
The summit also builds on the work of President Paul Kagame and African Union institutions in improving continental health financing and coordination. It draws inspiration from Mahama’s leadership during the 2014 Ebola outbreak and his recent speech at the Global Summit on Health and Prosperity in Brussels, reinforcing Africa’s readiness to lead through unity and innovation.
This landmark gathering is poised to elevate Africa’s voice in global health governance and lay the foundation for a future where health sovereignty becomes a reality across the continent.
