Obasanjo Urges African Leaders to Support Traditional Medicine and Establish Health Fund -

Obasanjo Urges African Leaders to Support Traditional Medicine and Establish Health Fund

Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo has called on African leaders to embrace traditional medicine and create a continental health fund as part of efforts to secure Africa’s health sovereignty and build a resilient healthcare system.

Speaking at the Africa Health Sovereignty Summit in Accra, Ghana, on Tuesday, Mr. Obasanjo said African countries must shift from “hand-wringing” to decisive action in the face of global health challenges.

“We had Ebola; we had the HIV-AIDS pandemic; we had COVID-19, but we rode out of all of these. The way we handled HIV-AIDS in particular should give us hope,” he said.

Local Solutions for Global Health Crises

Mr. Obasanjo stressed the value of localized solutions, particularly traditional medicine at the family and community level. He shared insights from a past meeting where he learned that 80% of pharmaceutical drugs have herbal origins, highlighting the untapped potential of African indigenous knowledge.

“The herbs in our villages and rural areas are useful. Even pharmaceuticals derive a significant portion of their products from herbs. We must leverage this,” he said.

Investing in Health Insurance and Infrastructure

At the national level, he urged African countries to:

Scale up health insurance schemes
Allocate at least 25% of their budgets to healthcare systems and infrastructure.

Though most countries have health insurance policies, Obasanjo pointed out that greater investment is needed to improve access and quality.

Proposal for an African Health Fund

To support health initiatives continent-wide, the former president proposed the creation of an African Health Fund. He suggested it be modeled after the Peace Fund, which has supported conflict resolution across Africa.

“If we can mobilize funds quickly for peace efforts, we can certainly do the same for health,” he said.

He recommended the African Development Bank manage the fund and suggested it could be financed through innovative means such as a surcharge on flights into or out of Africa.

Global Cooperation Still Needed

Obasanjo emphasized that while Africa must build self-reliant health systems, global solidarity remains essential, especially during health emergencies that cross borders.

“We need health security for all,” he concluded, calling for ambition, unity, and innovation in building a new era of health sovereignty in Africa.