Africa Health Surveillance: WHO, CDC, RKI Partnership Expands
Rwanda joins the Health Security Partnership in Africa, a major move to fortify disease surveillance and public health security across the continent. This expansion, spearheaded by the WHO, Africa CDC, and RKI, along with crucial support from Canada and the united Kingdom, aims to sharpen the detection and response capabilities for both natural and purposeful health threats. Launched in 2023, the initiative already benefits several nations by linking health and security sectors for stronger biorisk management. The expansion into Rwanda is part of a proactive approach, bolstering training and technical assistance to enhance each country’s ability to manage disease outbreaks effectively. News Directory 3 reports on this collaborative effort to build a healthier, more secure Africa. Discover what’s next as the partnership accelerates in participating countries…
Health Security Partnership Expands Disease Surveillance in Africa
Updated May 29, 2025
Teh Health Security Partnership (HSPA), a collaborative effort to bolster disease surveillance in Africa, is expanding to include Rwanda. The World Health Organization (WHO),Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC),the Robert Koch institute (RKI),along with the governments of Canada and the United Kingdom,jointly announced the expansion.
Africa faces a disproportionately high number of disease outbreaks. The HSPA initiative seeks to strengthen epidemic intelligence, enabling countries to better detect and respond to both natural and deliberate public health threats. Launched in 2023, the partnership initially included The Gambia, Mali, Morocco, Namibia, South Africa, and Tunisia.
The core of the HSPA initiative is a collaborative surveillance approach, linking health and security sectors to mitigate biological risks. This aligns with the global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction and the Signature Initiative to Mitigate Biological Threats in Africa (SIMBA).
“HSPA represents an important step forward in building stronger partnerships for health security in Africa… WHO remains committed to working alongside Member States to ensure that these collective efforts are well-coordinated, responsive, and rooted in national priorities,” said Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, Acting WHO Regional Director for Africa.
The partnership supports participating countries in enhancing their capabilities in biorisk management, event and indicator-based surveillance, genomic surveillance, and epidemic intelligence. This support includes training, guidance advancement, and technical assistance tailored to each contry’s priorities.
“Within the framework of this project, Africa CDC will work with the Member States in mobilizing political will for biosecurity and surveillance… The collaboration with other partners and coordination with member States is crucial especially in the current context of limited resources,” said Dr Raji Tajudeen, Acting Deputy Director general, Africa CDC.
What’s next
Building on initial achievements, participating countries, with support from the WHO and other partners, will accelerate implementation efforts to create a healthier, safer, and more resilient Africa through strengthened disease surveillance.