Reflecting on the AU-EU Innovation Agenda – How Far Have We Come?

The African Union (AU)-European Union (EU) Innovation document was signed in 2019. In addition, both continents have also put in place individual strategies and ambitions (EU Global Health Strategy 2023, AU strategy 2063). Collaboration is key to these ambitions. But have the plans materialized, if so where are the good examples on which to build further successes, and what obstacles can be seen and also possibly overcome.

The session will go over the background to the innovation agenda, its key aims and objectives. The first 2 speakers will lay the foundations for critical reflections on progress, and subsequent speakers will illustrate on several examples how innovation has been put into practice through initiatives from Academia (the AU/Charité/Karolinska lecture series on vaccine manufacturing in Africa), alongside the AU-led Plan for Action (PAVM), The Guild of European Research Universities, and their partnership with African Academic Centers of Excellence in the newly formed clusters of excellence, and possibly illustration of recent industry investment. The available and needed support mechanisms will be reflected upon, including via the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP), European and African Universities and its role in the AU/EU Innovation agenda.