Willow Health Media moderated high-level panels at the inaugural Africa Health Data Forum in Nairobi, steering conversations among governments and development partners on how countries can align priorities and make health data work for patients.
When health leaders from across Africa gathered in Nairobi to ask how better data can deliver better care, Willow Health Media was working both behind the scenes and on stage.
The inaugural Africa Health Data Forum ran from 10 to 12 November 2026 at Safari Park Hotel under the theme “Better Data, Better Health for All”. Convened by the World Health Organization (WHO), Kenya’s Ministry of Health and the Digital Health Agency, it drew more than 300 participants from 51 countries, among them health leaders, development partners, policymakers and technology experts.
The forum set out to advance health data transformation through investment, innovation and collaboration, recognising that reliable, accessible health information is central to strong health systems and better patient outcomes.
Production Manager Sarah Kamande moderated a session inviting development partners to reflect on country priorities.
Around the table were Pepukai Chikukwa, Regional Strategic Information Advisor for East and Southern Africa at UNAIDS; Debora Zewdu, Advisor to the African Union at GIZ; and Dr Samuel Wambugu, Africa Director for AI, Data and Digital at PATH.
Others were Dr George Mwinnyaa, Statistics and Monitoring Manager in UNICEF’s Office of Strategy and Evidence; Dan Hogan, representing Gavi and the Global Financing Facility (GFF); Wondimu Ayele, Health Information Systems Specialist at the Global Fund; and Funke Ogwa, Senior Manager and Team Lead for Service Delivery at VillageReach.
The panelists weighed the progress, opportunities and challenges African countries face in strengthening health information systems.
A central question was how partners can better align their investment, technical support and innovation with each country’s own health priorities, avoiding fragmented interventions and building digital health transformation that lasts.
The conversation underlined that governments and partners must work together to build integrated data systems that serve citizens and support evidence-based decisions.
Digital Editor Sara Okuoro moderated a second high-level panel, titled “What Should Countries and Partners Prioritise Together?”
The panelists were Hrayr Wannis, UNICEF Regional Data Manager; Dr Sylvian Massom, Director of Health Information Systems, Cameroon; Patrick Konwloh, Liberia’s Director of Health Information Systems; and Dr Arash Rashidian, Acting Director, Health Systems and Life Course.
The session explored the shared responsibility of governments and partners to accelerate digital health transformation, strengthen data governance and ensure that investment in health technology produces tangible improvements in care.
The discussions unfolded against the backdrop of Kenya’s own digital health transformation. Health Cabinet Secretary Hon. Aden Duale outlined the country’s Digital Superhighway agenda.
He explained how digital systems are simplifying healthcare processes and improving patient outcomes through better access to health information, more coordinated care and more efficient services.
Technology, he said, is a critical pillar in making Kenya’s health system more accessible, efficient and responsive to the needs of its people.
Prof. Mohamed Yakub Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa, stressed the urgency for African countries to embrace digital health data to safeguard citizens and strengthen the continent’s capacity to respond to health challenges. He urged governments to invest in reliable health information systems that support early detection of health threats, inform public health interventions and guide decisions that protect populations.
The forum moved the conversation beyond digitalisation as an idea and towards practical ways of making health data work for patients, health workers and health systems.
For Willow Health Media, it also showed that media can do more than report. By moderating meaningful conversations, connecting key players in the health sector and amplifying the voices shaping African healthcare, media helps turn dialogue into shared priorities.
As countries continue to invest in digital health, the forum’s message was clear. Better data must translate into better decisions, stronger health systems and better health for all.
