Perspectives on Shaping Africa's Science Future

Geopolitical Shifts: A Strategic Opportunity

Rising from 5% to 83%, the expansion of childhood immunisation tells a remarkable story of coordinated global health progress. According to the World Health Organization, more than 154 million lives have been saved through immunisation over the last 50 years alone. During this same period, deaths from HIV, malaria and tuberculosis dropped sharply, and maternal and child mortality declined significantly. These gains reflect decades of intentional and coordinated effort in scientific innovation, global action, and sustained financing.

The question much of Africa is grappling with today is how to safeguard and advance these achievements as geopolitical shifts and contracting health aid redefine the global landscape. The continent stands at a crossroads. We know that science and innovation are the engines of prosperity, yet global crises continue to pull attention and resources away from long-term investment. Conflicts in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the war in Ukraine, the crisis in Gaza, and escalating tensions across the Middle East involving Iran may seem distant but their ripple effects reach our shores. They disrupt supply chains, inflate costs, and force governments to choose between funding laboratories or funding survival. Every dollar diverted from research is a dream deferred, a discovery delayed. Africa cannot afford to let urgent crises eclipse its long-term vision. If the continent is to rise, science and innovation must remain at the centre of our development agenda, even in the face of global turmoil. The choice is stark: either we allow crises to dictate our future, or we invest in the knowledge to define it.

These moments of uncertainty also carry strategic possibilities. Africa's influence within global science is rising as the continent confronts and increasingly helps shape solutions to interconnected challenges such as pandemics, climate change, and food insecurity. This presents a pivotal opportunity for countries across Africa to accelerate domestic financing, reduce aid reliance, and build more resilient health systems while strengthening their voice in shaping the future of global science and innovation.

In response, SFA Foundation is strengthening partnerships with African governments and global science actors to advance a science diplomacy approach that positions Africa as an active shaper of global research and innovation agendas. Our aim is to position Africa not merely as a recipient of solutions, but as a co-designer of global agendas. This commitment will deepen in 2026 through the development of a science diplomacy framework with an initial launch of a pilot with the government of Kenya, designed as a model for regional expansion.

Advancing Science: Is Africa Keeping Pace?

Over the past 30 years, significant strides have been made in strengthening Africa's research ecosystem and scientific leadership pipelines. The imperative now is to sustain this momentum as global science advances at unprecedented speed.

One area of deliberate progress has been the expansion of longitudinal study cohorts. For too long, the continent's extraordinary genetic diversity has been absent from global databases, denying African populations the benefits of discoveries their genomes could unlock. That is now changing — the Science for Africa Foundation has championed an ambitious consortium of longitudinal cohorts involving more than seven million participants across the continent. By integrating genomics, stronger data systems, and improved governance, these cohorts are generating critical insights into the genetic and environmental drivers of disease and laying the foundation for precision medicine approaches that are better tailored to diverse African populations and ultimately more capable of informing equitable health policy.

This scientific momentum is reinforced by Africa's lived experience in managing health threats. Each year, countries across the continent detect and contain hundreds of disease outbreaks. This has built practical expertise in surveillance, labouratory systems, rapid response coordination, and community engagement, all of which proved invaluable during the COVID-19 pandemic. The post-COVID era has made it clear that we remain only one outbreak away from the next pandemic. These hard-earned lessons have reinforced the importance of interdisciplinary science. Research in pandemic and epidemic science is accelerating with purpose across clinical trials, vaccinology, virology, public health policy, data analytics, and the social and behavioural drivers of health. Together, these advances are generating knowledge that positions Africa to more effectively anticipate and respond to complex and evolving health threats while strengthening the scientific foundations required for resilient health systems.

Much has been said about Africa's demographic dividend and the promise of its rapidly growing youth population. Far less attention has been paid to the mental wellbeing of this generation and the pressures shaping their health outcomes — from unemployment and financial vulnerability to rapid urbanisation, climate shocks, conflict, digital exposure, and limited access to quality mental health services. Expanded research into youth mental health is deepening understanding of these intersecting stressors and informing more culturally grounded and effective models of care across Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America.

Alongside mental health, women's health represents another area long under-prioritised yet fundamental to societal wellbeing. Increased scientific focus is now illuminating overlooked conditions such as heavy menstrual bleeding, endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome, female genital schistosomiasis, and menopause. Research findings are generating an evidence base to improve diagnosis, treatment pathways, and provider capacity to address women's health within the healthcare system.

This widening lens on health extends beyond gender to the environments in which people live. Investments at the climate–health nexus are advancing innovative solutions to climate-sensitive infectious diseases, food system instability, and chronic disease in a changing environment. These efforts reflect a more holistic approach to health that recognises Africa's demographic potential cannot be realised without sustained attention to mental, environmental, and gender-responsive wellbeing.

Collectively, these advances signal a shifting trajectory for African science, moving towards greater leadership in shaping scientific priorities at continental, national and local levels. Throughout 2026, SFA Foundation will continue to play a catalytic role in accelerating this transformation. Through its convening power and commitment to equitable partnerships, the Foundation will continue to strategically direct resources toward high-impact research while helping to position African scientists and institutions as leading voices for innovative science-led solutions for a sustainable and secure future.

The Future of Science Impact: Centering Innovation

Innovation is the bridge between scientific excellence and societal impact. After decades of investing in research capacity and discovery, the next logical step for African science is to translate knowledge into tangible outcomes — stronger health systems, more competitive industries, and more responsive public policy. Innovation is therefore a critical phase to elevate African science from excellent to transformative.

For SFA Foundation, this focus on science innovation is deliberate and forward-looking. An innovation strategy now guides investments in the ecosystems, partnerships, financing models, and institutional capacity needed to move African science from discovery to delivery.

From our experience, however, innovation alone does not guarantee impact. Implementation research is essential to ensure that scientific breakthroughs are effectively adopted and scaled within real-world primary health care systems. To close this gap between discovery and delivery, SFA Foundation is launching new consortia to train the next generation of African scientists in implementation research and strengthen the evidence needed to translate innovation into measurable health outcomes.

By advancing science innovation alongside implementation research, we believe science will win and sustain public trust, attract sustainable financing and strengthen the sovereignty and economic growth of African countries. Ultimately, this is the pathway through which African science will advance discovery into solutions that improve lives and shape a more secure, prosperous, and resilient future for the continent.