Aig-Imoukhuede-led ABCHealth Becomes New Secretariat for Africa’s Alliance against Malaria

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja and Nume Ekeghe in Lagos

The African Business Coalition for Health (ABCHealth) yesterday announced its appointment as the new Secretariat for the Corporate Alliance on Malaria in Africa (CAMA).
The development, it said, marked a pivotal moment in its journey towards enhancing health systems across the continent, as it takes on stewardship of CAMA from the Global Business Coalition for Health (GBCHealth) in New York.
CAMA focuses on mobilising the private sector to drive impactful partnerships for malaria control and elimination in workplaces and communities.
Besides, it creates opportunities for the private sector to engage with peers and with leaders from governments, civil society, academia, and other sectors to scale impact in the fight against malaria.

As the new secretariat for CAMA, ABCHealth said it will build on the successes achieved over the past 17 years, providing value to its members in relevance and scaled impact in the fight against malaria.
The appointment, it stressed, was a key milestone in GBCHealth’s plan to transition its work to being fully African-led.
“Placing the leadership and management of CAMA within ABCHealth is a testament to its theory of change in cultivating partnerships and mobilising private sector resources to improve healthcare in Africa and change the way it works
“ABCHealth works closely with Africa’s private sector leaders as well as global organisations to help improve the health and wellbeing of all Africans.
“This new charge to lead CAMA and its esteemed member organisations, as wewider Malaria ecosystem to collaboratively control and eventually eliminate malaria across the continent is a responsibility ABCHealth is proud to take on,” a statement from the organisation stressed.
Global business leader, Mr. Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, Founder & Chairman of the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation & Chairman of ABCHealth amongst others, stated that to tackle the health problems in Africa, there was the need for private sector collaboration.
“The current challenges facing Africa’s healthcare and its disproportionate disease burden reinforces the strong business case for private sector engagement in health.

“The transition of CAMA to ABCHealth is a further opportunity for partners in both public and private sectors to collaborate towards improved health outcomes across Africa,” he added.
Chief Executive of Aliko Dangote Foundation and ABCHealth Board Director, Zouera Youssoufou, expressed her delight about the move.
“Our Principal and ABCHealth Co-Founder,  Aliko Dangote, who is also the Chair of the End Malaria Council in Nigeria, looks forward to seeing a scaling up of the impact of CAMA in Africa now that the organisation will be fully led by Africans,” Youssoufou.
Chief Executive of ABCHealth, Dr. Mories Atoki, said: “Our Coalition is fully committed to moving CAMA further. We recognise the impact of members’ activities, and look forward to working with all of them as well as with new members in the coming year and beyond.
“We recognise the unwavering support of CAMA’s Leadership Council (Access Bank, Chevron, Aliko Dangote Foundation, and ExxonMobil) during this transition and their continued commitment to the Alliance’s goal of a Malaria-free Africa.”

Erstwhile President & Chief Executive Officer of GBCHealth, Lesley-Anne Long, said: “CAMA has been one of GBCHealth’s flagship programmes for more than 15 years and we are delighted that its impactful work will continue through ABCHealth”.
ABCHealth is a coalition of businesses, philanthropists and development institutions that collectively seek greater private sector contribution towards Africa’s health needs at national, regional and continental levels.
The coalition will facilitate the development and deployment of impactful health programmes across Africa, deepen knowledge, building evidence for future investments and strengthen coordination among African business leaders, companies, philanthropists and global business networks for concerted action on health
 Aig-Imoukhuede is Chairman, ABCHealth as well as Access Holdings Plc and Coronation Group Limited while Aliko Dangote is Chairman and President of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL); and Chairman of the Aliko Dangote Foundation through which he co-founded ABCHealth.
Launched by Marathon Oil over a decade ago, CAMA was created to coalesce the private sector to lead & support innovative malaria prevention, control and treatment activities across Africa.
GBCHealth has served as a hub for business engagement on the world’s most pressing health challenges for over 25 years, inspiring businesses to leverage their power and resources to drive progress in the areas of greatest need.