A groundbreaking new pan-African Ecosystems, Finance and Health initiative (EFH), being developed through a collaboration between scientists, finance experts and local stakeholders, will address the critical question of how improvements in the environment and health are financed in 21st-century African landscapes. 

Co-organized by James Hassell, an epidemiologist with the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute’s (NZCBI) Global Health Program and Yale School of Public Health, EFH convened leading African and international experts from science, finance, government and NGO backgrounds for a workshop that explored novel financing mechanisms to preemptively manage the health consequences of climate change and biodiversity loss.  

“A significant proportion of human and animal diseases are mediated by environmental factors, particularly in African contexts where climate hazards intersect with social, economic and food system challenges,” Hassell said. “Proactive management is not only economically advantageous but essential for sustainable public health outcomes.” 

The workshop, co-organized by Joseph Kamau of the Institute of Primate Research, Kenyan Ministry of Health, immersed participants in the model of community conservation and landscape management exemplified by the Namunyak Wildlife Conservancy, which is managed jointly by local communities and the Sarara Foundation. 

Key discussion points included: 

• The current financing landscape of public health in Africa
• The attractiveness of joint financing for health systems, food production and ecosystem management for financing organizations, and the financial instruments that could be used to achieve this
• The development of a conceptual model linking health, environmental sustainability and financial returns
• Data gaps and unknowns to direct resources toward co-financing public health and ecosystem management 

The four-day meeting was defined by the group’s interactions with their hosts—semi-nomadic pastoralists of the local Samburu community. Climate change presents urgent challenges for rural communities like these across the world, but they have unique insights and knowledge about how to address these challenges. With the help of the Samburu, and guided by the community’s own resilience-building strategies, participants mapped out interventions that could improve health by jointly targeting ecosystems, food production and health care across different African landscapes, and the beneficiaries of these solutions. 

EFH aims to foster a community of practice dedicated to making co-management of ecosystems, food systems and public health systems financeable. A one-year road map toward this initiative, including identifying a five-year strategic plan and core funding, garnered unanimous support from participants.  

“It is time to unlock the flow of patient private capital towards bankable projects in Africa that promote the conservation of nature, preserve human health, and are community-focused,” said Mary Njuguna, the principal specialist of capital markets at FSD Africa, a Kenya-headquartered development finance nonprofit. “The blending of various financing tools is critical to achieving this, and it requires a bold, collaborative approach, which EFH represents.” 

Pauline Lenguris, a member of Kenya’s parliament, the woman’s representative for Samburu and member of the Kenyan government’s Parliamentary Committee on Health, addressed attendees and highlighted the health challenges her constituents face. She also stressed the importance of empowering communities, particularly women, as custodians of the environment.  

EHF’s inception was made possible by the Sarara Foundation, NZCBI’s Global Health Program, Smithsonian’s Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Research, Science for Africa Foundation, University of Liverpool’s Pandemic Institute, University of Milan, Yale Africa Initiative and Yale Planetary Solutions Project. The initiative traces its origins over more than a decade’s worth of collaboration on health and biodiversity conservation between the NZCBI’s Global Health Program and peer institutions in Africa. 

About the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI) leads the Smithsonian’s global effort to save species, better understand ecosystems and train future generations of conservationists. Its two campuses are home to some of the world’s most critically endangered species. Always free of charge, the Zoo’s 163-acre park in the heart of Washington, D.C., features 2,200 animals representing 400 species and is a popular destination for children and families. At the Conservation Biology Institute’s 3,200-acre campus in Virginia, breeding and veterinary research on 264 animals representing 20 species provide critical data for the management of animals in human care and valuable insights for conservation of wild populations. NZCBI’s more than 300 staff and scientists work in Washington, D.C., Virginia and with partners at field sites across the United States and in more than 30 countries to save wildlife, collaborate with communities and conserve native habitats. NZCBI is a long-standing accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. 

About FSD Africa

FSD Africa is a specialist development agency funded through UK Development operating in more than 30 countries working to help make finance work for Africa’s future. Based in Nairobi, FSD Africa’s team of financial sector experts work alongside governments, business leaders, regulators, and policymakers to achieve policy and regulatory reform, capacity strengthening, and improving financial infrastructure, to address systemic challenges in Africa’s financial markets. Since 2017, the organization’s strategy has evolved to prioritize solutions to Africa’s most critical challenges: economic, social, and environmental. The organization has worked to promote investment into the continent’s green economy, as well as its rates of financial inclusion and gender equality. FSD Africa – previously known as Financial Sector Deepening Africa – was founded in 2012 and is based in Nairobi, Kenya. For more information, please visit: http://www.fsdafrica.org.

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