A new agreement has been inked by the World Health Organisation and the European Union (EU) to support the digital transformation of health systems and wider adoption of WHO’s Global Digital Health Certification Network (GDHCN) in sub-Saharan Africa.
The partnership plans to improve pandemic preparedness and accelerate progress towards better health and well-being for all, they said.
The agreement was announced at the World Health Summit 2025 by Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO assistant director-general for health systems, access and data; Dr Mohamed Yakub Janabi, WHO regional director for Africa; and Martin Seychell, deputy director-general of the European Commission Directorate-General for International Partnerships.
News-Medical.net reports that the GDHCN is a global system enabling countries to securely verify nationally approved digital health credentials across borders. The system builds on the EU Digital Covid Certificate (EU DCC), which facilitated verification of vaccination, testing and recovery certification for international travellers, connecting 76 countries and territories.
However, only four countries from the WHO African Region-Benin, Cabo Verde, Seychelles and Togo-were able to join the EU DCC network.
Since its transfer to the WHO in 2023, the GDHCN has shown strong potential to support the digitisation of the International Certificate of Vaccination or Prophylaxis (ICVP), commonly known as the Yellow Card, in alignment with the updated International Health Regulations.
Making the most of its potential could enhance global vaccination tracking, reduce fraud, and simplify international health requirements.
Under the new joint agreement, which includes an €8m EU grant spanning 2025 to 2028, WHO and the EU will collaborate to bolster national efforts to advance the digital transformation of health systems in sub-Saharan Africa.
WHO will provide technical and policy expertise, in collaboration with regional partners like the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).
The EU investment is part of the Digital Health workstream of the Team Europe Initiative on the EU-AU Health Partnership, bringing together European and African stakeholders to build resilient digital health ecosystems across the continent, and aligned with the EU Global Gateway strategy.
Empowering countries, people
The GDHCN supports countries in building interoperable digital health systems that provide secure, portable health records accessible wherever they travel, including during health emergencies. Personal health records are managed securely by each individual country or their health system, and cannot be accessed by other parties, including WHO.
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