Lusaka, Zambia - At the 75th Session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa, Ministers of Health and high-level delegates converged to reaffirm their commitment to the health and well-being of women, children, and adolescents. As part of the documents presented, the Ministers considered the technical document AFR/RC75/5 on Accelerating Progress in the Health and Well-being of Women, Children, and Adolescents by Transforming Health Systems in the African Region.

The paper presents a stark yet hopeful picture: while notable gains have been made over the past two decades, including a 40% reduction in maternal mortality and a halving of under-five mortality, progress is uneven and insufficient to meet the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Key challenges include limited access to and utilisation of health services; substandard quality of care; issues related to broader social determinants of health, such as climate change, water, sanitation, hygiene, and food insecurity; as well as contextual challenges that hinder sustained political will, good governance, and leadership. Fragile and conflict-affected situations, along with health systems that are underfunded, understaffed, underequipped, and unable to meet the population's health needs, further compound these challenges.

“Africa accounts for 70% of global maternal deaths and 55% of under-five deaths. We cannot accept this as normal” said Dr Mohamed Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “The time has come for us to radically transform our health systems to deliver quality services for every woman, every child, and every adolescent, no matter where they live.”

To meet the SDG targets by 2030, AFR/RC75/5 called for strategic actions based on three flagships to “stimulate investments," “capacitate health systems,” and “deliver services for everyone” in the WHO African Region.  

Member States appreciated the technical paper AFR/RC75/5 and supported its recommendations to accelerate efforts to improve the health and well-being of women, children, and adolescents. They called for high-impact, innovative interventions to meet Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) targets 3.1 and 3.2 by 2030. The discussion focused on strengthening integrated, people-centred health systems, especially in Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH), and underlined that collective action, innovation, and sustained investment are vital to accelerating progress. Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to ensuring women, children, and adolescents survive and thrive through equitable access to quality health services. They called on the WHO and partners to provide technical support and capacity building to strengthen national health systems, facilitate learning exchanges and accountability, and support resource mobilization efforts, particularly advocacy for increased domestic financing to bridge existing funding and implementation gaps.

As the SDG deadline approaches, urgency is paramount.

“Let us now turn our plans into practice, our commitments into action, and our vision of ‘everyone, everywhere’ into a reality for every woman, every child, and every family across this great continent” concluded Dr Adelheid Onyango, Acting Director for the Health Systems and Services Cluster, WHO African Region