Health Policy Watch: African Union pushes for greater domestic spending on health amid reports of huge disruptions to HIV and TB services

July 27, 2026 - 03:35

The African Union wrapped up a two-day special health summit on July 22, with a clear message for member states: start spending more of your own money on health. The meeting, held in Addis Ababa, was designed to push political leaders to commit to bigger domestic budgets for healthcare, rather than relying so heavily on foreign donors.

This push comes at a critical time. New reports presented at the summit show that services for HIV and tuberculosis across the continent have suffered severe disruptions. The data indicates that treatment programs, testing campaigns, and prevention efforts have all taken a hit, putting millions of patients at risk. The disruptions are tied to funding gaps, supply chain breakdowns, and the lingering effects of the pandemic on health systems.

The African Union argues that sustainable health systems cannot depend on unpredictable international aid. Leaders are being asked to allocate at least 15 percent of their national budgets to health, a target that most countries still fail to meet. Without that shift, experts warn that progress against HIV and TB could stall or even reverse. The summit ended with a call for urgent action, but concrete pledges from individual governments remain scarce.