WHO and EU Join Forces to Boost Digital Health Systems in Sub-Saharan Africa

“This partnership is a testament to our shared commitment to harnessing technology for equitable, accessible, and secure healthcare,” said Dr. Nakatani.

 

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Union (EU) have announced a groundbreaking partnership to accelerate the digital transformation of health systems across sub-Saharan Africa. The new agreement, unveiled at the World Health Summit 2025 in Berlin, will expand access to the Global Digital Health Certification Network (GDHCN) and strengthen regional pandemic preparedness.

The collaboration underscores the growing importance of digital innovation in healthcare — from vaccine certification to data-driven disease surveillance — as global health systems adapt to post-pandemic realities.

A New Milestone in Global Health Collaboration

The announcement was jointly made by Dr. Yukiko Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General for Health Systems, Access and Data; Dr. Mohamed Yakub Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa; and Mr. Martin Seychell, Deputy Director-General of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for International Partnerships.

Under the agreement, the EU will provide €8 million in funding from 2025 to 2028 to support the rollout of the GDHCN and other digital health initiatives. WHO will lead the technical and policy components, in close cooperation with the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and national health authorities.

“This partnership is a testament to our shared commitment to harnessing technology for equitable, accessible, and secure healthcare,” said Dr. Nakatani. “Through digital innovation, we can improve the resilience of health systems and ensure no one is left behind.”

Building on the Success of the EU Digital COVID Certificate

The GDHCN is an evolution of the EU Digital COVID Certificate (EU DCC) — a system that, during the pandemic, enabled the verification of vaccination, testing, and recovery documentation for travelers across 76 countries and territories.

While the EU DCC helped reopen borders and restore mobility during COVID-19, only four African countries — Benin, Cabo Verde, Seychelles, and Togo — were connected to the network. The new WHO–EU initiative seeks to address this gap by expanding access and capacity in other sub-Saharan nations.

Following its transfer to WHO in 2023, the GDHCN has been reimagined as a global, interoperable framework that allows countries to verify health credentials securely and independently. It has the potential to digitize the International Certificate of Vaccination or Prophylaxis (ICVP) — commonly known as the “Yellow Card” — under the updated International Health Regulations (IHR) framework.

Digitizing this process will simplify travel documentation, reduce fraudulent certificates, and improve international disease surveillance, particularly for vaccine-preventable illnesses such as yellow fever, cholera, and COVID-19.

Empowering Health Systems and Citizens

The GDHCN is designed to support secure, person-centered digital health systems that give individuals greater control over their health data. Each participating country maintains full sovereignty over its citizens’ records, ensuring privacy and compliance with global data protection standards.

Importantly, the WHO will not store or access personal data, ensuring that privacy remains at the core of the system. Participation in the network is entirely voluntary, allowing countries to integrate it based on their national priorities and capacities.

Mr. Martin Seychell of the European Commission emphasized the EU’s broader vision for digital transformation through the Global Gateway strategy and the EU-AU Health Partnership. “Through initiatives like this, we are investing in Africa’s digital future — empowering health systems with the tools they need to deliver better outcomes and respond effectively to future health crises,” he said.

Advancing Regional Digital Health Transformation

The WHO–EU partnership is part of the Team Europe Initiative on the EU-AU Health Partnership, which aims to build resilient, interoperable, and inclusive health systems across Africa. The initiative promotes digital health as a foundation for universal health coverage, integrating innovations such as telemedicine, e-learning for health workers, and real-time health data systems.

WHO and its partners will assist governments in developing national digital health strategies, strengthening cybersecurity frameworks, and ensuring that digital systems are aligned with global interoperability standards.

Dr. Mohamed Yakub Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa, highlighted the transformative potential of the collaboration:

“By investing in digital health, we are investing in stronger health systems, faster response to outbreaks, and a healthier, more connected Africa. This partnership is about equity — giving all countries the means to participate in a global health network that benefits everyone.”

A Vision for a More Resilient and Connected Future

The GDHCN aims to do more than verify vaccines or test results — it represents a foundation for a new era of global health cooperation, where data flows securely across borders, enabling better research, policy decisions, and emergency response.

By creating trusted digital pathways, the initiative will help countries in sub-Saharan Africa better prepare for pandemics, improve routine immunization systems, and build people-centered, interoperable digital health ecosystems.

As WHO and the EU deepen their collaboration, both organizations reaffirm their shared vision: a world where digital innovation drives health equity, transparency, and resilience — ensuring that every person, everywhere, can access the healthcare they need in an increasingly digital age.