The African Union (AU) – European Union (EU) summit aims to deepen cooperation between the EU and the AU “based on shared interests and values.” In the March 2020 EU-Africa Strategy, the European Commission brings together existing initiatives under five “partnerships”. Notably missing is an explicit partnership on human development. Health is also under-represented. On the contrary, the European Council’s position includes a priority on the human dimension, and the European Parliament’s report features human development with health as a foundational element and a key priority.
The AU-EU Ministerial Meeting in October 2021 resulted in a Joint Communiqué, which will guide discussions for the February AU-EU summit. While this communique agrees to health cooperation in a number of ways, we, a coalition of civil society organisations working in the field of global health, feel it neglects some major issues and is lacking concrete objectives. The next EU-Africa partnership framework should recognize well-functioning and resilient health systems as essential for both health security, and universal health coverage (UHC).
In order to achieve this, we submited 7 recommendations.
- With no end in sight for the Covid-19 pandemic, investment in health must be scaled up
- Investments in resilient health systems require a strong focus on equity
- The EU-Africa strategy should prioritise equitable access to basic social service, including health, by taking a multi-sectoral approach
- The next partnership should adopt concrete actions on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights
- The EU and its Member States need to stop blocking the negotiations on the TRIPS Waiver at the World Trade Organization
- Leaders should create a more enabling environment on R&I cooperation
- Leaders must support more effective financing of health systems and promote a fairer and more redistributive macroeconomic policies
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