HON. ENOCH GODONGWA-NA, MINISTER FOR FINANCE OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA,

HON. NEAL RIJKENBERG, CHAIR OF THE STC BUREAU & MINISTER FOR FINANCE OF THE KINGDOM OF ESWATINI,

HONOURABLE MINISTERS OF FINANCE, ECONOMIC PLANNING AND INTEGRATION, AND HEALTH,

MY DEAR SISTER, EXCELLENCY FRANCISCA BELOBE, COMMISSIONER FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, TRADE, TOURISM, INDUSTRY AND MINERALS,

EXCELLENCIES, DISTINGUISHED SPEAKERS, DELEGATES,

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,

I am honoured to join you for this critical Ministerial Segment of the 8th Specialised Technical Committee on Finance, Monetary Affairs, Economic Planning and Integration.

Allow me to commend the STC Bureau, the Government of South Africa and all convening institutions for placing human capital, especially health, at the centre of Africa’s economic transformation agenda.

1. Health is Economic Policy: The New Consensus

Excellencies,

We meet at a time when the global development landscape is undergoing a significant transformation.

We face multiple crises—pandemics, climate shocks, conflicts, fiscal distress—but also unprecedented political resolve. The question before us is not whether we should act; it is whether we should act. It is how boldly and how collectively we can act to build systems that are integrated, inclusive, and resilient.

Today, health is no longer just a social good; it is a fundamental human right. It is an economic imperative.

The evidence is clear: Every $1 invested in health yields up to $10 in economic return. Inversely, health shocks erase years of growth in weeks.

In this light, we must view health financing not as an expenditure, but as a strategic capital investment in Africa’s prosperity and stability.

As we all know, we meet at a time when the global development landscape is undergoing a significant transformation.

We face multiple crises—pandemics, climate shocks, conflicts, fiscal distress—but also unprecedented political resolve. The question before us is not whether we should act. It is how boldly and how collectively we can act to build systems that are integrated, inclusive and resilient.

Today, health is no longer just a social good; it is a fundamental human right. It is an economic imperative.

The evidence is clear: Every $1 invested in health yields up to $10 in economic return. Inversely, health shocks erase years of growth in weeks.

In this light, we must view health financing not as an expenditure, but as a strategic capital investment in Africa’s prosperity and stability.

2. From Fragmentation to Resilience: A Unified AU Vision

At the African Union Commission, we are advancing a comprehensive, continent-led vision for strengthening health systems, anchored in resilience.

Our mandate spans health, humanitarian affairs and social development—enabling us to build integrated solutions that address pandemics, poverty, protection and prevention.

We are working through flagship institutions like:

•        Africa CDC, which has now disbursed over $129 million from the Pandemic Fund to strengthen surveillance and emergency response;

•        The newly operational African Medicines Agency (AMA) is bringing regulatory autonomy; and

•        The emerging African Humanitarian Agency (AfHA), which will reinforce our collective ability to respond to crises.

These are not abstract bureaucracies—they are tools for continental resilience.

3. Anchoring in African Leadership: Kigali, Lusaka and Accra

Excellencies, we have momentum—but we must now accelerate and align our efforts.

Let me acknowledge three landmark leadership initiatives:

1.      President Paul Kagame has continued to demonstrate continental leadership in building efficient domestically financed health systems. Rwanda’s commitment to health insurance reform and digital health innovation is a model—showing that with political will, resource constraints can be overcome.

2.      The Lusaka Agenda, endorsed in 2023, is our continent’s roadmap for financing HIV, UHC, and essential services amid donor transitions. It calls for pooled procurement, regional manufacturing, and strategic repurposing of vertical funds.

3.      The Accra Health Financing Dialogue, led by H.E. President John Dramani Mahama earlier this year, marked a turning point. It was not just a call to action—it was a reset. A demand for equitable burden-sharing, smarter investments and African control over health system financing. We support the Accra Reset as a platform for follow-through.

These efforts must not remain isolated. They must converge into one bold ambition: Health sovereignty for Africa.

4. Three Proposals for the STC

Today, I propose three actions for your consideration:

First, let us jointly endorse a continental health investment compact—built around the Africa Health Strategy (2016–2030), the Lusaka Agenda, and the principles of the Accra Reset. This compact must align public budgets, private capital and regional mechanisms to protect and scale our health gains.

Second, we must tap into innovative financing instruments, such as social impact bonds, climate-health adaptation funds, and the proposed AU Health Resilience Fund. These are not alternatives to domestic resources — they are multipliers of domestic resources.

Third, we must ensure that financing reaches our continental institutions—Africa CDC, AMA, AfHA, and the RECs—to avoid the fragmentation that has too often undermined impact. We call for a dedicated “Africa Window” within the Pandemic Fund, aligned to our systems and priorities.

5. In Closing: A Shared Agenda for Human Security

Honourable Ministers, Excellencies and Colleagues,

Africa’s future will not be decided in Geneva or Washington—but in Addis Ababa, Yaoundé, Gaborone, Tunis, Abidjan, and every capital where Ministers like you are making tough choices with limited fiscal space.

The challenge is real—but so is the opportunity. With the right alignment of policy, partnership, and political will, we can build a new African social contract—where no mother dies giving birth, no child is left behind in a pandemic, and no country has to choose between debt payments and public health.

In the spirit of Agenda 2063, let us rise—not as fragmented actors, but as a united Africa with the will and the means to shape its destiny.

I thank you.