The Insights Learning Forum (ILF) 2026 concluded in Abuja on July 29 with a landmark Commitment Session, where governments, development partners, funders, healthcare providers, youth leaders, and implementing organisations announced 10 concrete pledges to accelerate digital health transformation across Africa. The two-day forum, hosted by eHealth Africa and the Dala Africa Group from July 28 to 29 under the theme "Insights. Partnerships. Inclusion. Interoperability. Investment," gathered more than 400 in-person delegates.
Commitments Target Key Health Priorities
The pledges focus on several critical areas: expanding financing for scalable health innovations, strengthening primary healthcare quality, advancing maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health, and supporting women-led entrepreneurship. Delegates also committed to widening access to quality care and promoting ethical health data sharing to support interoperable digital health systems.
Beyond service delivery, participants pledged to back Africa's innovation ecosystem by fostering locally led partnerships, expanding support for young innovators, improving knowledge sharing, and cutting fragmentation in digital health initiatives. This comprehensive approach aims to address both immediate health needs and long-term systemic challenges.
Government and Partner Responses
Nigeria's Coordinating Minister of Health, represented by Dr Obi Adigwe, Director General of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), praised the collaborative efforts. "Our focus now is to build on this momentum by fostering stronger partnerships, accelerating innovation, and creating an ecosystem where digital health solutions can thrive and deliver lasting impact," he said.
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, called for ambition beyond pilot projects, stating, "Innovation is the engine of transformation, and digital health is its nervous system." These statements underscore the high-level political support for the commitments made at the forum.
Accountability Built into Framework
Atef Fawaz, Executive Director of eHealth Africa, emphasised that the forum was designed to move beyond rhetoric. "Our goal is not simply to make commitments, but to track them. Each year, we intend to review what was promised, what was achieved, what worked, what did not, and what lessons can be carried forward," he explained. This annual review mechanism ensures that progress is monitored and lessons are incorporated into future actions.
Ota Akhigbe, eHealth Africa's Director of Partnerships and Programmes, echoed this focus, saying the Commitment Session was structured to drive coordinated action. "When you align the right stakeholders with the right investments and resources, you create the conditions for meaningful and lasting impact," he noted. Dr Muntaqa Umar-Sadiq, National Coordinator of the Sector-Wide Approach Coordination Office, stressed that lasting health system change depends on institutional coordination rather than isolated projects. "The future of healthcare depends on our ability to move from fragmented interventions to coordinated action," he added.
Continental Integration and Innovation
Jean Philbert Nsengimana, Chairman of the Africa HealthTech Summit, called for stronger continental integration, saying Africa must build "the infrastructure that allows our startups and our founders to grow faster." This call highlights the need for cross-border collaboration to scale digital health solutions across the continent.
The commitments made at ILF 2026 represent a significant step forward in Africa's digital health agenda. With over 400 delegates and a clear accountability framework, the forum has set a precedent for translating high-level pledges into tangible outcomes. As eHealth Africa and its partners prepare for annual reviews, the focus remains on delivering real improvements in health outcomes for African populations.
