President Kagame joined fellow leaders after the side session.
President Paul Kagame says African countries cannot continue to outsource solutions for their from problems externally, yet they can find ways of addressing them financially, particularly those challenges that affect ordinary people.
The Head of State made the rallying call Friday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he chaired a High-Level Meeting on Domestic Health Financing organized in collaboration with the African Union Commission, Africa Centre for Disease Control (Africa CDC) and AUDA-NEPAD, in his capacity as the African Union (AU) Champion on Domestic Health Financing.
President Kagame said that Africa is at a point where it should realise that it cannot continue to rely on others for solutions to the challenges the continent faces, especially in vital sectors such as health.
“Africa now finds itself at a crossroads. The health financing landscape has shifted dramatically. To attract grant funding for health, we will have to make a very strong case, and that means contributing more from our own resources, and relentlessly focusing on value for money,” President Kagame said.
President Kagame called on African countries to come up with solutions.
“We should not be daunted by this. The work to build our continent, including our health, cannot be outsourced to anyone else. Current events are therefore an invitation for us to take full ownership of our challenges, and find alternative ways of addressing them,” he added.
The Head of State arrived in Addis Ababa on Friday afternoon where he joins other Heads of State and Government from across the African Continent for the 38th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union.
