Commentary: Trump aid freezes, a wake-up call for African leaders to prioritize healthcare
By Hans Ngala
United States president Donald Trump’s announcement that all foreign aid will be frozen—with the exception of aid to Israel and Egypt—should be a wake-up call for African leaders to prioritize healthcare on the continent.
While we may be annoyed with Trump’s decision, this is a reminder that the US as a sovereign country has the proverbial knife and yam and can do as she pleases with her money. Most African countries are oil-rich or blessed with some other natural resources but for far too long, African leaders have never taken healthcare as a priority.
It is no secret that African leaders do not invest in the health systems of their countries sufficiently and thus when they fall sick, they are jetted off for treatment in Europe or North America, often paying thousands of dollars both for their trip and treatment – something most of their citizens cannot afford. Ironically, Africa often has the largest burden of disease. From ebola to tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, the largest numbers of sufferers are on the African continent but most African governments treat their public health like a non-event.
The COVID-gate scandal from 2020 is still fresh in the minds of Cameroonians, when funds meant for the purchase of personal protective equipment (PPEs) worth millions of Francs CFA mysteriously disappeared and after what many saw as a lame-duck investigation, most of the funds which trickled to private pockets, were never recovered.
Trump threatened to cut off all foreign aid which would have also included aid via PEPFAR, the US government’s anti-AIDS initiative, which would have also affected Cameroon where more than half a million people live with HIV.
Healthcare is not just a thing people should think of when they are sick but should be a constant, daily thing which the government invests in. Cameroon has an acute shortage of medical professionals, most public hospitals lack essential equipment and the number of specialist doctors is even smaller. The Ministry of Public Health has to step up its efforts to encourage more Cameroonian doctors to stay in the country, pay competitive salaries to medical professionals, and improve the infrastructure in public hospitals.
The Cameroon Baptist Convention (CBC) and the Catholic Church are two of the denominations that are filling a huge gap in healthcare in the private sector in Cameroon and the government must continue to support these churches as they are also playing a vital role in maintaining a healthy Cameroon.
Trump’s proposed budget cuts for foreign aid should be a call for Cameroon’s government especially, to ensure that she allocates a good amount of its budget to public health and ensure that those funds go to serve the purpose for which they are intended. There should be thorough auditing to ensure that funds are not misappropriated.
With the sustainable development goals (SDGs) listing health as one of those goals, Cameroon cannot afford to lag behind on this.
Should it come down to each country paying for life-saving medication such as for malaria and HIV, would Biya’s government be able to do it?
