Africa urged to prioritise domestic health to tackle rising burden of NCDs

African countries have been urged to increase domestic health financing to address the growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), particularly cancer, amid declining donor support and widening healthcare funding gaps.

Speaking during the ongoing World Health Summit Regional Meeting 2026 in Nairobi, experts warned that cancer and other NCDs continue to suffer chronic underfunding across the continent, even as cases rise sharply.

Jacqueline Wambua, General Manager at Roche East Africa, said African health systems continue to treat cancer care as an expense rather than an investment, leaving millions of patients to shoulder the cost of treatment.

“Health, particularly cancer management, has been treated as a cost centre, resulting in reduced resources. Yet Africa’s population is growing rapidly while our health financing models have not kept pace,” said Wambua.

She noted that nearly 75 per cent of patients in Africa still pay for healthcare out-of-pocket, making treatment unaffordable for many families.

“We do not need to continue debating whether cancer care is a priority. The real question is how quickly governments and partners can act because every delay has a cost,” added Wambua.

Wambua applauded Roche, an entity that has been partnering with respective states from merely supplying medicines to building systems that improve access to diagnosis, treatment, and digital health solutions.

The company is targeting a 60 per cent increase in cancer survival rates, even as more than 20 per cent of African countries still lack basic oncology infrastructure.

Wambua noted that partnerships between governments, the private sector and community organisations remain critical in improving access.

“Access begins in communities, not hospitals. Sustainable solutions require partnerships built on trust, reach and innovation,” she said.

With a shift in funding spaces following donor cuts, she emphasised the need to focus on preventive and promotive health.

This, she observed, can be attained by working closely with organisations, like Amref Health Africa, that have been implementing case management at the community level using Community Health Promoters (CHPs)

Additionally, experts at the summit said Africa must move from curative approaches to prevention, early detection, and stronger primary healthcare systems.


Prof Kofi Mensah Nyarko, Team Lead, NCDs, WHO Africa Region, said noncommunicable diseases are preventable and treatable, yet they continue to place a heavy burden on communities across Africa.

Cancer, in particular, is a growing public health crisis on the continent.

Among women, cervical and breast cancers account for a significant proportion of cancer cases, yet too many women are diagnosed late or receive inadequate treatment.

"No woman should suffer or die from a disease that can be prevented, detected early, and treated.
Too many women still lack access to timely diagnosis, quality treatment, and the care they need," said Prof Nyako.

He added that strengthening prevention, screening, early detection, and treatment services is therefore critical to reducing cancer deaths and improving women’s health outcomes across Africa.

Africa is experiencing a rapid epidemiological transition, with NCDs now accounting for nearly 37 per cent of deaths in sub-Saharan Africa.

Cancer alone contributes to over 10 million global deaths annually, and by 2030, NCDs are projected to surpass communicable diseases as the leading cause of death in many African countries.

In Kenya, officials said the government is increasingly relying on the Social Health Authority (SHA) to improve efficiency and patient outcomes, including digitising services and strengthening cancer care pathways.

National Cancer Institute Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr Elias Melly said Kenya records approximately 44,000 new cancer cases annually, with nearly 21,000 deaths each year.

“Cervical cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer deaths among women in Kenya, yet it is largely preventable and treatable if detected early,” he said.

According to Melly, Kenya has made progress by aligning local and regional cancer policies, investing in digitised cancer screening programmes and expanding financing for cancer care through SHA and the Primary Healthcare Fund.

“Kenya has embraced domestic financing for cancer care, allowing deployment of funds through primary healthcare and specialised programmes while reducing treatment costs through access initiatives,” he said.

Further, he said, despite policy gains, access remains highly unequal.
“In this era of precision oncology, over 90 per cent of patients in Africa still cannot access advanced cancer treatment,” Dr Melly added.

Health financing experts also raised concerns over inefficiencies in public spending, poor prioritisation of primary healthcare, and fragmented donor-funded programmes.

Dr Rose Oronje, deputy executive director of the African Institute for Development Policy (AFIDEP), said African governments must not only raise more resources locally but also improve how existing funds are spent.

“The biggest challenge is inefficiency in health financing. Even where budget allocations exist, we are not adequately prioritising primary healthcare, prevention and community systems,” said Runje.

She observed that governments should invest more in preventive care, maternal health, adolescent health and community health promotion rather than focusing disproportionately on tertiary hospitals.

According to her, though Kenya has set up CHPs, now formally recognised as level one healthcare providers, experts say they remain inadequately integrated and underfunded.

“We need to properly employ and pay CHPs because they are doing critical preventive work at the community level,” said Benda Kithaka, Founder and Executive Director of Kilele Health Association.

Experts further called for stronger accountability mechanisms to track health spending and ensure citizens can monitor the implementation of reforms such as SHA.

“There is growing interest in Kenya’s health financing reforms, but citizens must also hold government accountable for where money is going and what outcomes are being achieved,” said Oronje.

Participants also challenged philanthropists and donors to align their investments with government priorities rather than funding fragmented projects.

The summit comes as African countries increasingly seek to mobilise local resources following cuts in external donor funding, raising fresh urgency around sustainable health financing models for the continent.