ANGOLA READY TO EMBRACE PRESIDENT SAMIA’S AU THREE ZEROS AGENDA ON MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH

Angola has expressed readiness to embrace President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s African Union Three Zeros Championship Agenda, which seeks to eliminate preventable maternal deaths, prevent newborn deaths and ensure that every child receives essential vaccinations across Africa Continent.

The commitment follows discussions between President Samia and her Angolan counterpart, President João Lourenço, on strengthening bilateral cooperation including the health sector in maternal and child health.

President Samia, the African Union Champion for Maternal and Child Health, said she had invited Angola to join the continental efforts towards achieving the Three Zeros targets.

“I have encouraged Angola to embrace the approach we have championed under the AU’s Three Zeros agenda: zero maternal deaths during childbirth, zero preventable newborn deaths and zero children missing essential vaccinations. Every child must be vaccinated,” President Samia said.

President Lourenço welcomed the opportunity to learn from Tanzania’s experience, particularly in reducing maternal and newborn deaths.

“We would like to benefit from her experience as the African Union Champion for Maternal and Child Health, as well as Tanzania’s broader experience,” he said.

He emphasised that achieving these targets requires investment in healthcare infrastructure, modern medical equipment and, importantly, human resource development.

Highlighting Angola’s shortage of healthcare professionals, President Lourenço proposed bilateral cooperation that would enable Tanzanian health professionals to work in Angola while creating opportunities for Angolan students to pursue professional training in Tanzania.

“We believe Tanzania can support us through bilateral agreements that would allow Tanzanian healthcare professionals to work in Angola, while Angolan students could also come to Tanzania for professional training,” he said.

He reaffirmed Angola’s commitment to working with Tanzania, stating: “We are committed to working together in the health sector for the mutual benefit of our two countries.”