Ugandan public health expert Dr Richard Kabanda has been re-elected Chairperson of the Africa Continental Coordination Mechanism on Community Health during a high-level continental meeting currently underway in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The election was conducted among representatives from 43 African countries attending the continental health coordination summit, with Uganda retaining the influential leadership position for another two-year term.
Dr Kabanda, who has served in the role since November 2023, defeated competition from Gabon after securing strong backing from member states across Eastern, Southern and Western Africa. His opponent, Dr Alinda of Gabon, reportedly received support mainly from Central and Northern African countries.
The Africa Continental Coordination Mechanism on Community Health plays a critical role in guiding policy coordination, technical collaboration and implementation strategies aimed at strengthening community health systems across the continent.
As chairperson, Dr Kabanda is expected to continue providing technical leadership in advancing Primary Health Care systems, a key pillar in improving access to essential health services, disease prevention, maternal healthcare, immunisation and epidemic preparedness across Africa.
Health experts say the re-election reflects growing confidence in Uganda’s contribution to public health leadership on the continent, particularly in community-based healthcare delivery, disease surveillance systems and epidemic response mechanisms.
The committee also announced additional technical members from Zambia, Morocco, Gabon and Côte d’Ivoire to support continental coordination efforts during the new term.
Over recent years, African countries have increasingly prioritised community health systems as frontline structures for responding to public health emergencies including Ebola, COVID-19, malaria and other disease outbreaks, especially in underserved and rural communities.
Dr Kabanda’s renewed mandate comes at a time when many African governments are investing heavily in strengthening grassroots healthcare systems to improve universal health coverage, emergency preparedness and health service delivery.
Background
The Africa Continental Coordination Mechanism on Community Health brings together health experts, policymakers and government representatives from across Africa to coordinate strategies aimed at improving community healthcare delivery.
The mechanism works closely with African Union health structures, Ministries of Health and development partners to strengthen community health worker programmes, improve disease surveillance and expand access to primary healthcare services.
Uganda has in recent years gained continental recognition for its experience in epidemic preparedness, vaccination campaigns and village health team structures that support community-based healthcare delivery and rapid disease response.