Experts call for data-driven policies to build resilient health systems in Africa
Health experts, policymakers, and innovators have urged African governments to prioritise data-driven and locally led health systems to strengthen resilience and sustainability across the continent.
The call was made at the just-concluded 2025 Gatefield Health Summit in Abuja, where participants emphasised that Africa’s health transformation depends not just on funding, but on how well countries use data, research, and local expertise to design smarter systems that respond to their realities.
The summit is Africa’s annual health convening, bringing together policy. The summit concluded with a unified call to action that for Africa to achieve lasting health resilience, it must invest in evidence, empower innovators, and translate research into policymakers, global leaders, and communities to advance resilient, equitable, and locally driven health systems.
Speakers at the summit agreed that building smarter, more equitable health systems requires closing the data gap and investing in homegrown innovation.
The Programme Associate at Corona Management Systems (CMS), Adaeze Eche-George, noted that resilient systems are data-driven systems and when “technology, evidence, and human insight work together, countries can deliver smarter, faster, and more equitable health outcomes.”
Showcasing African-led innovation
A highlight of the summit was the presentation of CMS’s Health Insurance Management Information System (CHIMIS), a digital platform designed to improve efficiency, transparency, and sustainable financing within Nigeria’s health insurance ecosystem.
The organisation also showcased the Nigeria Malaria Modelling Fellowship (MMF), developed in partnership with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP), and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The fellowship trains African public health professionals in mathematical modelling for infectious disease control and to translate data into actionable disease-control strategies.
“By strengthening local expertise in modelling and analytics, we’re putting the power to shape health policy back into African hands,” Ms Eche-George said.
Case studies
The summit also highlighted three CMS-supported initiatives demonstrating how data improves outcomes across Nigeria and beyond.
The Big Catch-Up in Bayelsa State; is a project in partnership with the Bayelsa State government to strengthen vaccination coverage in underserved areas, using data mapping and to identify and reach “zero-dose” children across four local government areas.
The project strengthened immunisation systems through field coordination, data visibility, and community engagement.
The Demand-Side Incentive (DSI) Project; through transport incentives and digital tracking, CMS registered over 42,000 children and supported 20,000 caregivers, helping overcome barriers to immunisation in Nigeria, with expansion underway in the DRC, Lesotho, and Cameroon.
The Malaria Modelling Fellowship programme continues to build local analytical capacity to guide national malaria and infectious disease strategies.
Evidence-based policies
During a session on tobacco control, Catherine Egbe of the South African Medical Research Council, urged policymakers to base their health strategies on evidence, not imported assumptions.
Ms Egbe said, “The endgame is not mutually exclusive to tobacco control, without effective control, implementing the endgame is nearly impossible.”
Experts cautioned that applying “one-size-fits-all” frameworks from global contexts without local adaptation could undermine Africa’s progress in public health policy.
Emerging threats of nutrition and antimicrobial resistance
The summit also addressed the twin crises of malnutrition and antimicrobial resistance (AMR), which experts warned could reverse health gains if left unaddressed.
Felicia Anumah, Director of the Centre for Diabetes Studies, University of Abuja, revealed that Nigeria now has 19.8 million malnourished children, the highest in Africa, while obesity rates continue to rise — creating what she called a “double burden” of undernutrition and overnutrition.
Meanwhile, Vivian Kwaghe, Infectious Disease Unit of the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, described antimicrobial resistance as “a man-made crisis,” calling for coordinated surveillance across human, animal, and environmental health systems.
Way forward
Across multiple panels, participants agreed that Africa’s next health revolution must come from within — through bold investments in research, robust data systems, and homegrown digital infrastructure.
Ms Eche-George said technology-driven, locally led strategies enhance accountability, efficiency, and long-term sustainability.
The summit concluded with a unified call to action for Africa to achieve lasting health resilience, must invest in evidence, empower innovators, and translate research into policy.