NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 26 — The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is urging global leaders to adopt enforceable equity measures in pandemic preparedness, warning that without binding commitments, new global health frameworks risk repeating the failures exposed during COVID-19.
The call comes as more than 1,000 delegates gather in Nairobi for the World Health Summit Regional Meeting 2026, running from April 27 to 29 at the United Nations Office at Nairobi, even as parallel negotiations continue in Geneva on the final elements of the pandemic agreement.
AHF says the overlap of the two processes highlights a critical disconnect between high-level policymaking and the realities facing African health systems.
“We are in two rooms at the same time, talking about the same problem,” said Samuel Kinyanjui,AHF Kenya Country Director.
“In Geneva, decisions are being made about sharing benefits from pathogen data. In Nairobi, we are asking whether Africa will continue depending on others or build the capacity to protect its own people.”
At the centre of the debate are ongoing talks under the World Health Organization to finalise the Pandemic Agreement and its Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) system — mechanisms expected to shape how countries share biological data and access resulting vaccines, diagnostics, and treatments.
AHF argues that unless the PABS framework is made enforceable, countries that contribute critical pathogen data could once again be locked out of life-saving technologies.
“The Pandemic Agreement cannot be meaningful without a fair and enforceable PABS system,” said Oluwakemi Gbadamosi
Deputy Executive Director of the AHF Global Public Health Institute.
“Countries that share pathogen data must be guaranteed access to the vaccines, diagnostics, and treatments developed from that data.”
The organisation is pushing for mandatory benefit-sharing provisions, expanded technology transfer, and stronger accountability mechanisms to ensure transparency in how pathogen data is used.
The Nairobi summit, themed “Reimagining Africa’s Health Systems: Innovation, Integration, and Interdependence,” comes against a backdrop of chronic underfunding across the continent.
Average per capita health spending in many African countries remains about $17 — far below the estimated $60 needed to deliver essential services.
AHF is using the summit to amplify its advocacy, hosting discussions on pandemic preparedness and engaging policymakers, civil society, and global partners on equitable access to health innovations.
It is also working with the Resilience Action Network Africa to convene a civil society caucus aimed at aligning advocacy ahead of key global decision points, including the upcoming World Health Assembly.
AHF Regional Advocacy and Policy Manager, Diana Tibesigwa said civil society actors were ready to push for sustainable and inclusive health solutions.
“As civil society, we stand ready to collaborate with governments and partners to advance solutions that secure the health and dignity of all people now and for future generations,” she said.
AHF warns that geopolitical and economic interests could overshadow equity in the final agreement, arguing that decisions taken now will determine whether future pandemic responses are more inclusive — or repeat past disparities.
“The decisions made now will determine the shape of the next global response,” the organisation said.
“It will either be built on equity and cooperation, or on the same disparities the world has already lived through.”
At the Nairobi summit, the organisation is combining advocacy with engagement, hosting an exhibition booth showcasing its HIV and broader public health programmes, and convening a fireside discussion on pandemic preparedness and the PABS system.
The session is expected to bring together policymakers, civil society actors and global partners to examine Africa’s priorities in future health responses.
AHF is also participating in a mini-symposium under the Health Equity Network and working with the Resilience Action Network Africa to convene a civil society caucus aimed at aligning advocacy positions ahead of key global decision points, including the upcoming World Health Assembly.