The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), has allocated $1.6 million to strengthen nine National Public Health Institutes (NPHIs) across Africa, including Nigeria and eight other countries.
The funding will be used for equipment, training, and capacity-building to enhance disease surveillance, outbreak response, and public health research in the selected countries.
According to the agency, Dr. Jean Kaseya, Africa CDC Director General, announced in a letter to the selected organizations on January 31, 2025, that as a Center of Excellence, the National Public Health Institutes would serve as regional hubs for peer-to-peer technical assistance, training, and mentorship.
“It will also support Member States in developing or strengthening core National Public Health Institutes functions, including disease surveillance, outbreak response, public health research, and workforce development,” he stated.
The selection of institutes in Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Africa, and Rwanda follows a rigorous assessment of National Public Health Institutes across Africa.
“This initiative aligns with Africa CDC’s mission to enhance disease control policies and strengthen public health capacities in Member States,” the agency stated.
Funding and infrastructure support
The agency has allocated $1.6 million for equipment and training to the Centres across the continent.
“We are planning different types of support, but this year we will be equipping them to start National Data Management Centres. We will be procuring servers and computer software, including training,” said Haftom Taame, Principal Technical Officer, Public Health Institutes and Research at Africa CDC.
Accreditation and global collaboration
As part of the initiative, National Public Health Institutes from Mozambique, Liberia, and Burundi will be prioritized in 2025 to obtain ISO 9001 accreditation, improving operational efficiency through streamlined processes.
Starting in the second quarter of this year, Africa CDC, in collaboration with the European CDC, will twin the Centers of Excellence with European National Public Health Institutes, allowing them to learn from best practices.
Leadership and capacity-building efforts
To strengthen National Public Health Institutes, Africa CDC will also focus on leadership and management—continuing an initiative started last year that supported seven countries. This year, four rounds of training will be conducted to build leadership and management capacity across the continent.
“We will help them to build capacities for essential public health functions, including research, surveillance and information systems, emergency response coordination, workforce development, and corporate governance and leadership,” Taame said.
He added that once these Centres are established, they will support regional Member States in setting up their own National Public Health Institutes and building their capacities, as Africa CDC alone cannot serve all member states from its headquarters in Addis Ababa.
Challenges in public health coordination
Taame highlighted the biggest challenge in managing health security in Africa as the fragmented approach to outbreaks and infections. In many countries, core public health functions are handled by different departments or agencies.
“For example, surveillance is managed in one place, response is handled elsewhere, and the lab is in another centre. These entities are not linked to the department that responds to the outbreak or the lab that detects the infection to coordinate the response,” he explained.
Liberia’s recognition as a center of excellence
Dr. Dougbeh Chris Nyan, Director General of the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), welcomed the decision to designate his institution as a Center of Excellence.
“This recognition is a testament to the dedication of our public health professionals. As a Center of Excellence, we will continue leading efforts in disease surveillance, emergency response, and capacity building for the African continent,” he said.
National Public Health Institutes selection as a Center of Excellence marks a significant milestone for Liberia, a country that has faced major public health challenges, including the 2014–2016 Ebola outbreak and the COVID-19 pandemic.
