Livingstone, March 6.– African countries have been urged to harmonise nursing and midwifery standards, strengthen leadership and invest in education.
This is to ensure the creation of resilient health systems capable of delivering universal health coverage across the continent.
Cornelius Mweetwa, Acting Minister of Health of the Zambia, made the call at the opening of the Second Regional Conference of the African Nurses and Midwives Confederation (ANMC) held in Livingstone.
The conference, which brought together more than 200 delegates including over 60 international participants from across Africa, was held under the theme: “Harmonizing Standards, Elevating Practice: A Unified Approach to Nursing and Midwifery Excellence in Africa.”
Participants include nurses, midwives, researchers, educators, regulators and policymakers from Ghana, Liberia, Kenya, South Africa, Malawi, Botswana, Cameroon, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Opening the conference, Mr Mweetwa said nurses and midwives formed the backbone of health systems across Africa and played a critical role in achieving universal health coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals.
“You are the first point of contact for most patients. You are present at birth, at illness, in times of crisis and at the end of life. Your contribution is indispensable to achieving universal health coverage,” he said.
He said the theme for the conference called for action on four key fronts ; harmonisation of professional standards, strengthening leadership, improving education and advancing universal health coverage.
Mr Mweetwa said harmonisation would help align policies, practices and standards across the continent, enhance collaboration among countries and improve the quality of nursing and midwifery care.
He stressed the need for stronger leadership within the profession, noting that effective nursing and midwifery leadership would drive innovation, advocate for resources and help steer health systems toward equity and improved patient outcomes.
The Minister said investing in advanced education and training for nurses and midwives would enable the continent to respond effectively to emerging health challenges including pandemics, communicable diseases and the growing burden of non-communicable diseases.
“The COVID-19 pandemic reminded the world of what Africa has always known ,that nurses and midwives are not merely health workers but leaders, innovators, advocates and pillars of community resilience,” he said.
He acknowledged that persistent challenges affecting the profession across Africa, included workforce shortages, migration, retention concerns, limited access to specialized training and resource constraints.
Mr Mweetwa reaffirmed Zambia’s commitment to strengthening nursing and midwifery education, promoting research and evidence-based practice and expanding leadership opportunities for nurses and midwives.
“Africa’s health challenges do not respect borders; therefore, our solutions must also transcend borders,”He said.
He urged participants to focus on cross-country learning, collaborative research, exchange programmes and digital health integration.
Mr Fray Michelo, President of the Zambia Union of Nurses and Midwives Organisation and Secretary General of the ANMC, said the conference was a major step toward building a unified continental voice for nurses and midwives.
He noted that nurses and midwives constituted the largest segment of the health workforce in Africa and were central to achieving universal health coverage, strengthening primary healthcare systems and reducing maternal and neonatal mortality.
“Africa’s healthcare landscape is changing rapidly, but one constant remains nurses and midwives are at the centre of healthcare delivery,” he said.
Mr Michelo said for many years African nursing practice relied heavily on imported evidence, but now the continent is witnessing the rise of African scholarship designed to solve its own health challenges.
Madam Daphne Shamambo, Director of Nursing and Midwifery Services at the Zambian Ministry of Health, said harmonisation of standards across Africa was essential for strengthening the nursing and midwifery workforce.
She said health systems across the continent were undergoing rapid changes due to demographic shifts, epidemiological transitions and technological advancements, making it necessary for nursing and midwifery professionals to adapt and collaborate more closely.
Mrs Shamambo emphasised that harmonisation should not mean uniformity but rather alignment that respects the diverse health systems and contexts across African countries.
She said achieving such goal would require strong collaboration between governments, regulatory authorities, academic institutions and professional associations.
“The future of healthcare on our continent will not be shaped in isolation but through collective action,” she said.
The conference is expected to produce recommendations aimed at strengthening professional standards, improving education and advancing nursing and midwifery practice across Africa.
