Ubuntu Rising 2026: Youth Action Plan Shapes the Future of Health in Africa
Over 80 young health professionals, researchers, entrepreneurs, and innovators recently convened in Cape Town for Ubuntu Rising 2026. Their mission was to identify practical changes needed to strengthen young people’s systemic roles and directly shape the future of health in Africa.
Convened by the Africa Health Collaborative and hosted by the University of Cape Town (UCT) ahead of the 18th World Congress on Public Health, the event moved beyond standard consultation. Instead, it provided a direct platform for youth to co-create solutions and formulate an actionable agenda for the continent’s health systems.
Young professionals gathered at Ubuntu Rising 2026 to co-create health system solutions. Source: SeventyFour / Getty Images
Addressing the Employment Paradox
The discussions were framed by a striking paradox within the regional health workforce. According to reports cited during the event from the WHO Regional Office for Africa and the Mastercard Foundation, the continent faces a massive shortage of 5.5 million health workers. Simultaneously, nearly one million trained health professionals remain without meaningful formal employment.
Prof. Brandon Collier-Reed, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Teaching and Learning at UCT, noted that true progress for the future of health in Africa depends not just on tracking employment numbers, but on analyzing whether systemic structures are actually working for the youth.
Nine Core Recommendations
To bridge this gap, participants formulated nine actionable recommendations across three core pillars: Leadership, Innovation, and Employment.
Key proposals included embedding innovation and entrepreneurship directly into higher education curricula, harmonizing training across borders to improve job transferability, and creating structured, dignified internship pathways. These strategic shifts are essential to ensuring that the future of health in Africa is driven by the very generation that will inherit it.
The University of Cape Town hosted the Ubuntu Rising 2026 event. Source: THEGIFT777 / Getty Images
From Potential to Influence
Dr. Nathina Pakade, a Public Health Medicine Registrar at UCT, highlighted that youth must transition from being mere “holders of potential to instruments of influence.” This powerful sentiment echoes across discussions on Afrikeye within our Health coverage, where empowering the next generation is a recurring theme.
The nine recommendations will now directly inform the Africa Health Collaborative’s Youth Agenda, guiding future programming and partnerships. For young professionals navigating new opportunities or exploring the continent via platforms like Afrikeye Travel, ensuring they have a definitive voice in the future of health in Africa is more than just active participation—it is the vital co-creation of a sustainable, equitable health system.
