The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa has urged African leaders to prioritise health sovereignty as a core economic strategy to reduce reliance on external aid.

The executive secretary of ECA, Claver Gatete, said this in a statement on the commission’s website.

Mr Gatete made the call while speaking at a high-level side event during the 2026 African Union Summit of Heads of State and Government.

He said the global order was shifting from hyper-globalisation to what he described as “strategic resilience”, where nations prioritise critical sectors such as food, energy and health.

“Health is no longer a social service; it is a strategic economic sector. Health security is national security,” he said.

The ECA chief noted that development assistance for health had declined sharply from about $80 billion in 2021 to $39 billion in 2025.

He said that Africa’s reliance on external financing and imported medical supplies exposed it to price shocks and supply disruptions.

According to him, although Africa spends approximately $145 billion annually on health, less than half comes from public budgets, leaving households to shoulder high out-of-pocket expenses.

“The consequences of inadequate and unpredictable financing are not only social but also macroeconomic. If the effects are economic, the response must also be economic,” he said.

Mr Gatete outlined four priorities to strengthen Africa’s health sovereignty, including integrating health into medium-term fiscal frameworks and mobilising domestic resources through innovative financing.

He said others include developing pharmaceutical and vaccine manufacturing using AfCFTA-enabled regional value chains and strengthening health delivery systems.

The ECA boss said that ECA was supporting governments to align health investments with macro-fiscal planning and industrial development.

Mr Gatete said this included a new partnership with the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation to be launched at the upcoming ECA Conference of Ministers in March.

“The choices we make now will determine whether Africa remains a consumer in the global health system or becomes a producer within it. Health sovereignty is, ultimately, economic sovereignty,” Mr Gatete said.

(NAN)