A declaration was signed on Saturday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, committing African leaders to convene an Extraordinary Summit in Nairobi, Kenya, in the second quarter of 2026 to accelerate local manufacturing of health products across the continent.
The announcement came on the sidelines of the 39th African Union Summit, where heads of state and senior officials have been meeting under the broader push to strengthen Africa’s economic resilience and reduce dependency on external suppliers.
According to officials present at the signing, the planned Nairobi summit will focus specifically on scaling up domestic production of vaccines, medicines, diagnostics and other essential health commodities. The move follows repeated calls from African health agencies for stronger continental capacity after COVID-19 exposed vulnerabilities in global supply chains.
During the pandemic, Africa imported the vast majority of its vaccines and medical supplies. That experience prompted the African Union and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) to set long-term targets for increasing local vaccine production and pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity.
The declaration signed in Addis Ababa signals political backing at the highest level for a coordinated strategy that links governments, development finance institutions and private manufacturers. Leaders are expected to discuss regulatory harmonization, pooled procurement systems, technology transfer, and financing mechanisms when they gather in Nairobi.
Kenya has positioned itself as a growing pharmaceutical and biotech hub in East Africa, and hosting the summit is seen as part of that broader ambition. Officials familiar with the preparations say consultations will begin in the coming months to define the agenda and identify priority projects ahead of the Q2 2026 meeting.
The signing ceremony took place as other summit discussions continued in Addis Ababa, with infrastructure financing, water and sanitation access, and trade integration also on the table.