On tuesday, May 20, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and Fiocruz will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) establishing a new partnership to advance health innovation, manufacturing, research and preparedness across Africa.
The MoU will be signed by Dr Jean Kaseya, Director-General of Africa CDC, and Dr Mario Moreira, President of Fiocruz, on the margins of the 78th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, during a ceremony celebrating Fiocruz’s 125th anniversary.
The agreement outlines joint efforts to build stronger National Public Health Institutes (NPHIs), expand translational research and disease surveillance through the One Health approach, boost local manufacturing of essential health products, and strengthen research, knowledge, management and policy translation. It also supports the development of public health law and legal preparedness, aligned with Africa CDC’s New Public Health Order and 2023–2027 Strategic Plan.
Attached to the Ministry of Health, Fiocruz is the largest biomedical research institution in Latin America, also producing vaccines and medicines to supply the Unified Health System (SUS, the Brazilian public health system). For this cooperation, the institution also brings expertise in research, workforce training and the production of health technologies. Its partnership with Africa CDC will deepen knowledge exchange in health financing, social development, and the strengthening of resilient public health systems in African Union Member States.
A Joint Action Plan will guide implementation, including technical working groups to coordinate activities, track progress and share outcomes. Although the MoU involves no immediate financial commitments, both parties will mobilise resources and collaborate with technical partners to drive its agenda forward.
Due to Fiocruz’s large experience in the field, the partnership strengthens Africa CDC’s push for health sovereignty, including local vaccine manufacturing. Currently, Africa produces only about 1% of the vaccines it consumes. Through platforms like the Platform for Harmonized African Health Products Manufacturing (PHAHM), Africa CDC is working to accelerate production. In 2024, 25 vaccine manufacturing projects were underway, with eight antigens expected to receive WHO prequalification and reach the market by 2030.
By 2030, the combined impact of health and economic shocks could push millions into poverty, threatening Africa’s stability. Africa CDC is leading a three-pillar response focused on domestic resource mobilisation, innovative financing and blended finance to secure the continent’s health future.
“This partnership embodies Africa CDC’s commitment to action-oriented, respectful collaborations that deliver real results for Africa’s health security,” said Dr Kaseya. “Partnering with Fiocruz unlocks a new dimension of South-South cooperation - built on mutual priorities and shared expertise.”
“The agreement signed with Africa CDC reflects Fiocruz’s vocation for establishing structural cooperation, which is central to our internationalization process. We reaffirm our commitment to working together to strengthen health systems, promoting the sovereignty of countries in the Global South so that they can be better prepared to face health emergencies,” said Dr. Moreira.
About Africa CDC
Africa CDC is a specialised health agency of the African Union, working to strengthen public health institutions, coordinate emergency response, and secure health sovereignty across the continent.
About Fiocruz
Founded on May 25, 1900, the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz) is a Brazilian state institution attached to the Ministry of Health. Its mission is to promote health and social development, generate and disseminate scientific knowledge and technologies, and act as an agent of citizenship. The institution produces knowledge and provides products and services to the Brazilian public health system — known as the Unified Health System (SUS).