Korede Abdullah in Lagos
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 Dr. Jean Kaseya, Africa CDC Director General, the NPHIs will 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,” Dr. Kaseya stated.
The selection of institutes follows a rigorous assessment of National Public Health Institutes across Africa. Haftom Taame, Principal Technical Officer at Africa CDC, added that the agency will provide equipment and training to establish National Data Management Centres, and support leadership and management capacity-building across the continent.
As part of the initiative, Africa CDC will also twin the Centers of Excellence with European National Public Health Institutes, allowing them to learn from best practices.
“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.
