Up to 60% of foreign health aid to Africa was effectively wasted, according to Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) director-general, Dr Jean Kaseya. Speaking at the World Bank–International Monetary Fund meetings in Washington, he said much of the funding had been fragmented, duplicative, or misaligned with national priorities. “We don’t need more than 40% of the money we were receiving before,” Kaseya said. Former Ethiopian health minister Dr. Lia Tadesse Gebremedhin agreed, estimating inefficiencies sometimes reached 80%.

Both urged African governments to strengthen governance, adopt unified national health plans, and expand domestic financing through taxes on tobacco and alcohol. Kaseya endorsed Ghana’s “Accra Reset,” calling for a shift from dependency to health sovereignty. Despite aid reductions, he argued, co-ordinated planning and pooled procurement could deliver better results with less money – if donors align under one budget and countries assert control over their own systems.