Policy paper

Communique on the inaugural United Kingdom–Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention High-Level Health Dialogue

Published 25 November 2025

We, the Government of the United Kingdom and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), convened in London, United Kingdom, on 11 November 2025 for the inaugural UK–Africa CDC High-Level Health Dialogue.

In the presence of senior officials from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), the Ministry of Defence, and the Africa CDC leadership,

Recalling the Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) signed at the United Nations General Assembly in 2024, which established a framework for strategic collaboration in public-health preparedness, response and health-system strengthening;

Recognising the importance of equitable, sustainable and mutually beneficial cooperation to advance Africa’s health sovereignty and global health security;

Guided by the principles of the New Public Health Order for Africa, the Africa Health Security and Sovereignity, and the Lusaka Agenda on health financing and system resilience;

Acknowledging that protecting health in Africa and the United Kingdom are inseparable goals in an increasingly interconnected world.

We reaffirm our shared commitment to strengthening Africa’s health security, One Health collaboration, and joint preparedness to prevent, detect and respond to health threats.

1. Political and strategic commitments

• reaffirm partnership under the 2024 MoC as the foundation for collaboration between the UK and Africa CDC

• support the leadership of Africa CDC in advancing continental frameworks, including the Incident Management Support team (IMST) and the African Strategy for Health Security and Universal Health Coverage; as well as support Africa CDC and the WHO in advancing the Joint Emergency Preparedness Action Plan (JEAP), ensuring  an inclusive and comprehensive framework that addresses both preparedness and response

• encourage alignment of joint work with the Lusaka Agenda, ensuring that investments strengthen Africa-led initiatives and national ownership

• facilitate structured policy dialogues to monitor progress and define shared priorities each year

2. Technical and programmatic commitments

• deepen collaboration on emergency preparedness, prevention and response, including the deployment of technical expertise through the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team under Africa CDC’s Incident Management System

• scale up genomic and antimicrobial-resistance surveillance, building on the SeqAfrica initiative and associated laboratory-capacity programmes

• advance local manufacturing of therapeutics, diagnostics and vaccines, including through the Platform for Harmonised African Health Manufacturing (PHAHM) and Africa CDC’s Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Strategy

• collaborate on digital health and data systems to enable real-time disease intelligence, interoperability and early-warning capacities

• strengthen primary health care (PHC) and workforce development to anchor community-level resilience and frontline response

• support joint initiatives in One Health, addressing human, animal and environmental health risks and promoting climate-resilient preparedness

3. Financing and resource mobilisation commitments

• commit to sustainable, predictable financing for health-security programmes as far as possible, in alignment with Africa CDC’s Continental Health Financing Framework

• encourage national integration of health-security priorities into Medium-Term Expenditure Frameworks (MTEFs)

• promote co-financing models that leverage public, private and innovative instruments to advance local manufacturing, digitalisation and workforce expansion

• ensure transparency, accountability and results-based management in the allocation and utilisation of resources supporting joint priorities

4. Joint implementation and accountability

• establish a Joint Monitoring Mechanism between the UK and Africa CDC to track implementation of agreed actions and measure progress annually

• Convene a technical co-creation workshop in March 2026 to progress  new areas of cooperation – Digital Health and Primary Health Care

• prepare a Joint Progress Report ahead of the next High-Level Dialogue to review implementation and refine shared objectives

• strengthen joint communication, advocacy and knowledge-exchange initiatives to amplify lessons and ensure transparency.

5. Conclusion

From London, we send a message of unity and shared responsibility:

“Stronger together for a safer world, advancing Africa’s health sovereignty through partnership and mutual respect.”

We, the signatories of the London Communiqué, commit to translating these principles into measurable actions, sustainable investments and tangible results for populations across Africa and the United Kingdom.

Signatories
Government of the United Kingdom
Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC)