ACCRA, Ghana--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 27, 2025--
The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Global Public Health Institute, in collaboration with The Society for AIDS in Africa ( SAA ), will host a High-Level Summit on Regional Health Leadership and Sustainable Financing in Africaimmediately following the opening ceremony of the International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa ( ICASA 2025 ) on Dec. 3 in the H.E. John Dramani Mahama room at the Accra International Conference Centre.
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Aligned with the Africa CDC’s New Public Health Order and the African Union’s Agenda 2063, the summit will unite heads of state from Ghana and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, ministers of health and finance, development partners, parliamentarians, civil society, and private sector leaders to advance dialogue and commitment toward a more equitable, self-reliant health future for Africa.
Building on decades of experience in tackling the HIV epidemic, African leaders and global health partners will explore lessons learned from the continent’s HIV response to shape sustainable, inclusive pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response and health financing models.
“Sustainable health financing and regional production are not just political priorities—they are imperatives for Africa’s health security and prosperity,” said Dr. Jorge Saavedra, Executive Director of the AHF Global Public Health Institute. “This Summit underscores the need for bold leadership, innovative financing, and cross-sector collaboration to secure the continent’s health future.”
The summit’s Presidential Fireside Chat will feature H.E. John Dramani Mahama, President of the Republic of Ghana, and H.E. Félix Tshisekedi, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, moderated by Dr. Michel Sidibé, AU Special Envoy for the African Medicines Agency.
The Presidential Fireside Chat will be followed by a ministerial-level dialogue on Sustainable and Innovative Health Financing, featuring Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate (Nigeria), Dr. Pakishe Aaron Motsoaledi (South Africa), Hon. Dr. Samuel Roger Kamba (DRC), Hon. Dr. Benjamin Houkpatin (Benin), Dr. Jean Kaseya (Africa CDC), and Hon. Dr. Cassiel Ato Baah Forson (Ghana), moderated by Dr. Penninah Iutung, AHF. The session on Leadership, Community, and Science – Regional Production will bring together Dr. Mohamed Janabi (WHO AFRO), Dr. Nicaise Ndembi (IVI), Allan Maleche (KELIN), Dr. Ana Beatriz Amaya (UNU-CRIS), Prof. Morenike Ukpong (SAA), and Dr. Benjamin Djoudalbaye (Africa CDC).
Alongside the summit, AHF will host two engaging fireside chats at its ICASA 2025 exhibition booth.
AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS organization, currently provides medical care and/or services to over 2.7 million clients in 50 countries worldwide in Africa, the Americas, the Asia/Pacific Region and Europe. To learn more about AHF, please visit our website: www.aidshealth.org, find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/aidshealth and follow us on Twitter: @aidshealthcare and Instagram: @aidshealthcare
The AHF Global Public Health Institute develops and advocates for evidence-based policy change to create a more equitable and effective global health architecture. With a focus on infectious diseases and health systems, our work addresses critical gaps in global health security, equity, governance, law, and finance. The AHF Global Public Health Institute is part of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. Visit our website for more information: ahfinstitute.org
The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Global Public Health Institute, in collaboration with The Society for AIDS in Africa (SAA), will host a High-Level Summit on Regional Health Leadership and Sustainable Financing in Africa immediately following the opening ceremony of the International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA 2025) on Dec. 3 in the H.E. John Dramani Mahama room.
President Donald Trump said U.S. forces will keep hitting Iran “very hard” in the next two or three weeks and bring the country “back to the Stone Ages,” even as he touted the success of U.S. operations and argued that all of Washington’s objectives have so far been met or exceeded.
Trump said Iran would continue to face a barrage of attacks in the short term.
“We are going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks,” Trump said. “We’re going to bring them back to the Stone Ages, where they belong.”
Trump didn’t say anything about negotiations with Iran or bring up the April 6 deadline he set for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz, the critical waterway for global oil and gas transport. He has threatened to attack Iran's energy infrastructure if the strait was not reopened.
Trump also did not offer a clear path to end the supply disruptions that have sent energy prices soaring. He did not mention the possibility of sending U.S. ground troops into Iran, or NATO, the trans-Atlantic alliance he has railed against for not helping the U.S. secure the waterway.
Oil rose more than 4% and Asian stocks fell after the comments. Oil prices were sharply higher following Trump’s remarks. Brent crude, the international standard, jumped 4.9% to $106.16 per barrel. Benchmark U.S. crude rose 4% to $104.15 a barrel.
U.S. gas prices jumped past an average of $4 a gallon for the first time since 2022 on Tuesday, as the Iran war continues to push fuel prices higher worldwide. Analysts say those high fuel costs will trickle into groceries as businesses’ transportation and packaging costs pile up.
Here is the latest:
A New York-based think tank said Thursday that U.S. President Donald Trump’s speech suggests he “is willing to leave the Strait of Hormuz off the table, leaving other nations to deal with the consequences.”
“Trump’s message was that the United States can sustain its own economic and energy ecosystem, while countries dependent on regional exports will either have to buy from the United States or manage the Strait themselves,” the Soufan Center wrote.
“While Trump explicitly thanked U.S. allies in the Persian Gulf for their cooperation and allyship, an expedited U.S. withdrawal without securing the Strait will leave many of these countries, whose economies are dependent on energy exports, in the lurch.”
Fuel prices in Thailand soared again on Thursday after the government further cut subsidies, sending diesel price to over 44 baht ($1.35) per liter, about 12% increase.
The surge was the second time in a week, after a majority of fuel prices rose by 6 baht ($0.18) per liter last Thursday.
Democrats are criticizing Trump’s primetime address to the American people on the war in Iran as “incoherent” and as doing little to answer “the most basic questions the American people,” according to statements from two Democratic lawmakers released on Wednesday.
Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., noted that Trump owed Americans more answers about a conflict that has driven up prices on gas “alongside rising prices for diesel, fertilizer, aluminum, and other essentials, with consequences that will continue to ripple through the economy for a long time to come” in his statement.
Meanwhile, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., released a statement that said the “speech was grounded in a reality that only exists in Donald Trump’s mind.”
Murphy went on to add that “no one in America, after listening to that speech, knows whether we are escalating or deescalating.”
Oil rose more than 4% and Asian stocks fell after U.S. President Donald Trump said in his first national address since the Iran war began that the U.S. will keep hitting Iran very hard.
Trump also said the United States will “finish the job” in Iran and that military operations could wrap up soon.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 was down 1.4% to 53,004.81 in early Asia trading on Thursday. South Korea’s Kospi lost 3.4% to 5,292.36. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.8% to 25,082.59.
U.S. futures were down more than 0.7%.
Oil prices were sharply higher following Trump’s remarks. Brent crude, the international standard, jumped 5% to $106.22 per barrel. Benchmark U.S. crude rose 4.2% to $104.36 a barrel.
Members of civic groups hold signs against the U.S. and Israel attacks on Iran near the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Israel's rescue teams and residents take shelter as sirens sounds next to a site struck by an Iranian missile in Bnei Brak, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
A family who fled Israeli shelling in southern Lebanon warm themselves by a bonfire next to tents used as shelters in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
People stand near a damaged van beside scattered debris following an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
A firefighter extinguishes a car at the site of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
