Launch of the Joint Coordination Team to Strengthen Africa’s Health Architecture

 
25 September 2025

The African Union Commission (AUC), through its Department of Health, Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development (HHS) successfully launched on September 24, 2025, the Joint Coordination Team (JCT) on the margins of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 80) in New York.

This was in collaboration with the World Health Organization, Regional Office for Africa (WHO-AFRO), Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), the African Medicines Agency (AMA), WHO- (Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office (EMRO), and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs).

Presided over by H.E. Amb. Amma A. Twum-Amoah, Commissioner for Health, Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development, the inaugural meeting of the JCT marks a historic step in aligning Africa’s health institutions, strategies, and resources to achieve a more integrated, resilient, and self-reliant health system for the continent.

 
Speaking at the opening, H.E. Amb. Amma A. Twum-Amoah stressed that the JCT is a strategic response to the growing need for coherence and synergy across Africa’s health ecosystem, moving beyond siloed approaches to foster joint planning, resource mobilization, and programme implementation. 

The JCT will serve as a high-level, action-oriented coordination platform to:

·        Promote policy coherence and integration of health strategies across AU institutions and Member States.

·        Mobilize and align technical, human, and financial resources to avoid duplication and maximize impact.

·        Co-develop flagship health programmes in priority areas including Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and Primary Health Care (PHC).

·        Strengthen regulatory systems and technical capacity, with a particular focus on supporting AMA’s maturity and pandemic preparedness initiatives. 

By the conclusion of its inaugural session, the JCT agreed to:

·        Formalize its status as a standing continental coordination mechanism.

·        Adopt its Terms of Reference, governance structure, and institutional roles.

·        Launch the development of a joint 2025–2026 work plan aligned with Agenda 2063 and the AU–WHO Memorandum of Understanding.

·        Designate institutional focal points to lead action tracking, coordination, and reporting.

The Commissioner reaffirmed that this initiative is not only a political statement of unity and shared purpose, but also a promise to Africa’s citizens, to deliver people-centred, equitable, and sustainable health systems that leave no one behind. 

The launch of the JCT reinforces the AU’s commitment to realizing Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want and to achieving health sovereignty through strong partnerships, evidence-based planning, and integrated continental action. 

African Union Commission