Opening Session
The 2025 IANPHI Annual Meeting was opened with introduction speeches by Director General of the Instituto Nacional de Saúde of Mozambique Dr. Eduardo Samo Gudo, and IANPHI President Prof. Duncan Selbie.
The session was moderated by Dr. Sofia Viegas, INS Mozambique Deputy Director.
Dr. Gudo delivered a speech in Portuguese, thanking everyone for their attendance. Prof. Selbie, thanked Mozambique and INS for hosting and praised the country's public health leadership. He also highlighted IANPHI's unique role as a global network of government public health leaders, which is particularly important in current uncertain times.
Dr. Severin von Xylander, director of Mozambique WHO Country Office, then shared his opening remarks with the audience. He welcomed participants and shared personal experiences to highlight the importance of strong national public health institutes (NPHIs) and international cooperation in managing public health threats. He emphasized that each country must define its own structure, invest in it and reduce its reliance on external funding. However, he stressed that even strong NPHIs depend on global collaboration, making organizations like Africa CDC and WHO essential, as well as the IANPHI.
Minister of Health of the Republic of Mozambique H.E. Dr. Ussene Isse, officially opened the 2025 Annual Meeting after a short speech in Portuguese.
Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, WHO Regional Director for Africa
Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, expressed deep appreciation to Mozambique and IANPHI leadership, reflecting on his two decades of work with national public health agencies (NPHAs). He highlighted the growing number of NPHIs globally, and in particular in Africa. He spoke on the evolving and critical role of national public health agencies (NPHAs) in delivering essential preparedness and response functions during public health emergencies. Recognizing NPHAs as key partners in detecting and combating disease threats, WHO developed an initiative working with NPHAs globally to strengthen their capacities for emergency preparedness and response. This initiative is built on a foundation of collaboration, connecting stakeholders committed to supporting NPHAs in fulfilling their mandates and strengthening the global architecture for health emergency prevention, preparedness, response and resilience. Dr. Ihekweazu stressed that NPHIs must take the lead in detecting and responding to emergencies, supported—but not led—by WHO or Africa CDC. He also emphasized the importance of building strong governance models, clear institutional roles, and a global community of collaboration among public health agencies. He warned against fragmentation and called for unity in a challenging global and financial landscape. Quoting Chinua Achebe, he closed by reaffirming that gathering and collaborating as a public health community is not out of necessity, but because it is the right thing to do.
Chikwe Ihekweazu's presentation
Dr. Jean Kaseya, Director General, Africa CDC
Summary available soon