Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | — The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), in collaboration with the African Society for Laboratory Medicine (ASLM), has completed a five-year review of its Biosafety and Biosecurity Initiative. The review paves the way for a new continental strategy to strengthen Africa's preparedness and response to accidental and deliberate biological threats to health, security, and economic stability.

The Biosafety and Biosecurity (BSBS) Secretariat, Africa CDC, and ASLM led the Regional Consultative Meeting from 27-28 May in Addis Ababa to formally conclude Phase I of the 2021-2025 Africa CDC Biosafety and Biosecurity Strategy.

Representatives from African Union Member States, chairs of the five Regional BSBS Technical Working Groups, delegates from three regional Centres of Excellence, the Examination and Certification Committee, and regional institutions, including the World Health Organization (WHO), the West African Health Organization (WAHO), the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), and BSBS partners, convened to identify priorities for the upcoming 2025-2030 strategy.

"As we conclude the first phase of the strategy, it is critical to reflect on the gains made, identify the gaps, and chart a forward-looking path for the second phase," said Dr Raji Tajudeen, Acting Deputy Director General and Head of the Division of Public Health Institutes and Research at Africa CDC. "When a single biological incident, whether accidental or deliberate, can affect multiple countries in a matter of days, the necessity for a continent-wide, harmonised biosafety and biosecurity framework becomes undeniable."

The new strategy will focus on raising regional awareness of biosafety and biosecurity, while supporting the establishment of National BSBS Technical Working Groups and Associations to drive local implementation and institutionalisation. It also prioritises the development of a sustainable funding framework to help Member States transition from external dependence to domestic resource mobilisation and aims to strengthen multi-stakeholder engagement to enhance the effectiveness and reach of biosafety and biosecurity interventions across the continent.

Africa CDC conducted a series of consultative workshops to assess the status of biosafety and biosecurity implementation across the continent. These consultations helped identify capacity gaps and informed the development of a regional, Five-Year Strategic Plan (2021-2025). This plan was implemented with the support of key partners, including Global Affairs Canada under the Signature Initiative to Mitigate Biological Threats in Africa (SIMBA), the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (US CDC), the United States Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), and the World Bank.

Some thematic areas will continue to guide Africa CDC's biosafety and biosecurity agenda. These include strengthening national legal and regulatory frameworks, building capacity for laboratory biosafety and pathogen control, and promoting secure and ethical research and development practices.

ASLM has made biosafety and biosecurity systems a core component of its projects, establishing itself as a cornerstone of Africa's health security architecture.

"Sustained investment in BSBS remains imperative to safeguard Africa against both natural and man-made biological threats," said Mr Nqobile Ndlovu, Chief Executive Officer of ASLM. "We need deeper ownership and institutionalisation of the critical capacities built over the past five years."

"Global Affairs Canada is committed to bringing more partners on board to support this Africa-led SIMBA initiative," said Trevor Smith, Deputy Director, Weapons Threat Reduction Programme, Global Affairs Canada. "We have the right programme, the right partners, and the timing couldn't be better. We stand firmly behind this partnership, now and into the future."

Over the past five years, the BSBS initiative has achieved significant milestones, including the establishment and operationalisation of five regional, multisectoral technical working groups; the development of an African Union-endorsed legal framework; and the creation of a certification and regulatory system for institutions handling High-Consequence Agents and Toxins.

"The lessons from recent disease outbreaks have shown us that risks are no longer isolated - a risk to one is a risk to all," said His Excellency Mr Adam Drury, Ambassador of the United Kingdom and Deputy Permanent Representative to the African Union. "Strengthening biosafety and biosecurity is not just important; it is a global imperative. The United Kingdom remains committed to supporting the health agenda and building on the remarkable progress you have made over the past five years."