The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has highlighted Africa’s overdependence on imports to meet vaccine needs for epidemic response and routine immunization. The continent imports over 90% of its vaccines. In response to these needs, the African Union (AU) and the African Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) launched…

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has shown the urgent need to expand production capacity for medical products in Africa to meet emergency and routine demands. Although the economic impact of the pandemic has led to a smaller fiscal space, there is a compelling case for higher government spending on health to…

The African pharmaceutical market’s estimated worth is between US $40 — $65 billion, but it remains largely untapped, with a heavy reliance on imports. The market is expected to grow in response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, a changing disease burden, urbanization, new technologies, health insurance expansion, anticipated continental…

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic underscores the urgent need to invest in resilient health systems. While governments are deploying economic and public health measures to curtail the multidimensional impact of the pandemic, the successful implementation of the African continental free trade agreement (AfCFTA) has the potential to contribute to resilient recovery…

The novel coronavirus has spread from China to over 170 countries — including all African countries — with millions of cases and hundreds of thousands of deaths globally. Egypt recorded Africa’s first COVID-19 case on February 14, 2020. In six months, the continent has gone from one to a million…

Nigeria is Africa’s largest economy, with a growing population and large healthcare market. Inadequate health financing, high levels of poverty and weak healthcare infrastructure limit access to affordable, high-quality health services. The coronavirus pandemic has exposed the weaknesses of the country’s health system: it highlights an urgent need for adequate…

Nigeria launched an Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP) in June 2020 as a one-year bridge plan beyond the Economic Growth and Recovery Plan (ERGP 2017–2020). With funding mainly from domestic sources, the plan aims to limit the health and socio-economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. It precedes a new national development…

Nigeria is Africa’s largest economy and most populous nation. It is an emerging health innovation hub which requires adequate public, private and philanthropic health investments to build a highly productive and competitive workforce that can contribute to sustained economic growth in the 21st century. The country’s low public investment in…

African countries have signed the agreement which came into force on May 30, 2019. Its objective is to increase intra-Africa trade with free movement of goods, services and people across borders. …