Building Strong Institutions for a Healthier Africa
Institution building rarely makes headlines, yet it is fundamental to an effective and sustainable public health architecture. Strong institutions provide the governance, systems and organisational capacity needed to translate technical expertise into lasting results.
The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the importance of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) as a key continental public health institution. When the pandemic swept across the continent, the Africa CDC emerged as one of Africa’s most important public health institutions. The crisis demonstrated the value of a continental body capable of coordinating responses, mobilising expertise, and supporting Member States before and during emergencies.
The pandemic also highlighted that scientific expertise alone is not enough. Effective public health leadership depends on robust governance, efficient business processes, skilled personnel, digital systems, and clear operational structures. These foundations enable institutions to respond effectively to emergencies while delivering their broader public health mandate.
As a relatively young institution, Africa CDC experienced unprecedented growth during and after the pandemic. Its expanding responsibilities and increasing continental prominence created a need to strengthen the organisational foundations required to support its evolving mandate. Building institutional capacity therefore became a strategic priority for ensuring the organisation's long-term effectiveness and sustainability.
Recognising this need, the German commissioned “Strengthening AU’s Health Architecture (SAHA) project implemented by GIZ, partnered with Africa CDC in 2021 to provide organisational development support. The partnership was designed to strengthen the institution’s internal capacities, systems, and structures, enabling Africa CDC to operate more effectively as a leading continental public health agency.
Over the past several years, GIZ has worked alongside Africa CDC leadership and technical teams to strengthen core organizational systems and improve key business processes. Progress was reviewed during the Midterm Review Meeting held on 10–11 June 2026 at Africa CDC Headquarters in Addis Ababa. The meeting brought together representatives of Africa CDC, GIZ, and implementing partner GOPA to reflect on progress and further recalibrate the focus of the support.
The review highlighted substantial progress across several key areas, including organisational governance, workforce development, digitalisation of operational processes, institutional systems and partnership management. Together, these improvements have enhanced Africa CDC’s ability to manage increasingly complex programmes, coordinate diverse stakeholders, and mobilise resources more effectively across the continent.
The partnership has also contributed to Africa CDC’s transition from a rapidly expanding institution reliant on evolving practices to a more systems-driven organization with stronger institutional resilience. By strengthening the underlying organisational architecture, the support has helped create the conditions necessary for programmes to be delivered more efficiently, consistently, and sustainably.
Participants agreed that the next phase should focus on deepening organisational ownership of these reforms and advancing broader change management across the institution. Embedding new systems, processes and ways of working will be essential to sustaining progress and ensuring that organisational improvements continue to support Africa CDC's expanding mandate.
As Africa CDC continues to evolve, the strength of its institutional foundations will remain central to its success. Strong organisations are better equipped to deliver strong public health outcomes. By supporting organisational development, GIZ contributes to strengthening the systems and capacities that enable Africa CDC to deliver coordinated, resilient and responsive public health leadership across Africa.