Dakar, 17 July 2026 – Nine African countries have developed costed national roadmaps to strengthen health professions education and ensure that future health workers acquire the competencies needed to respond to evolving health priorities.
The roadmaps were developed during a five-day workshop convened by the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa in Dakar, Senegal.
The meeting brought together health workforce leaders, education regulators and technical experts from Benin, Chad, Lesotho, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The nine countries are early adopters of the WHO Africa Prototype Competency-Based Curricula. Their roadmaps set out the policy, regulatory, governance and institutional actions required to adapt the regional curricula into nationally approved reference curricula and introduce competency-based education more widely.
Competency-based education focuses on what health professionals should be able to do when they graduate, rather than only on the courses they have completed. It equips health workers with the knowledge, practical skills and professional attitudes required to deliver safe, high-quality and people-centered care.
The approach is particularly important as African countries respond to changing health needs, including the expansion of primary health care, the growth of digital health, increasing health security threats and persistent shortages of adequately trained health workers.
“The competency-based education roadmap provides countries with a costed and structured pathway to institutionalise competency-based health professions education, develop national reference curricula and strengthen the quality of health professions education. As part of the Africa Health Professions Education Transformation and Harmonisation Initiative, it supports the development of a health workforce equipped with the competencies needed to respond to Africa’s evolving health needs,” said Dr James Avoka Asamani, Team Lead for Health Workforce at the WHO Regional Office for Africa.
The workshop combined technical presentations, practical exercises and peer learning to help countries translate regional guidance into nationally owned implementation plans. Participants reviewed the WHO Africa Prototype Competency-Based Curricula and examined the governance, policy and regulatory requirements for adapting them to national contexts. They also shared country experiences and lessons on curriculum reform, accreditation, quality assurance and stakeholder engagement.
By the end of the workshop, each country had produced a costed roadmap covering curriculum adaptation, stakeholder engagement and implementation. Countries also agreed on national priorities and regional follow-up actions, including continued technical assistance from WHO and opportunities for peer learning.
“This workshop has bridged a critical gap in our transformation journey. While we have long recognised that competency-based education is the direction we must take, WHO has provided the practical guidance and technical know-how needed to translate this vision into action,” said Dr Alfred Driwale, Commissioner for Health Services, Institutional Capacity Building and Human Resources for Health Development at Uganda’s Ministry of Health.
The roadmaps will guide reforms aimed at improving the quality and relevance of pre-service education and better aligning the training of health professionals with national health system needs.
“As the first countries to undertake this regional initiative, you have the opportunity to lead by example. The real measure of success will not be the roadmaps developed this week, but how effectively they are implemented to transform health professions education and inspire similar reforms across the African Region,” said Honourable Ndeye Maguette Ndiaye, Director of Cabinet at Senegal’s Ministry of Health and Social Action.
The participating countries will now begin implementing their roadmaps with technical support from WHO. Their experience will inform similar reforms across the African Region, promote greater harmonization of health professions education and contribute to building a more competent and responsive health workforce.
