On Thursday 5th June 2025, I was honoured to witness the Commissioning Ceremony of the African Medical Centre of Excellence in Abuja, Nigeria, a historic occasion marking a practical shift in the landscape of African health systems, where access to advanced clinical care, research, diagnostics, and training is no longer deferred abroad, but delivered here at home.

It was a privilege to join His Excellency the Vice President of Nigeria, Senator Kashim Shettima, together with development partners and dignitaries, as the African Medical Centre of Excellence, conceived through the leadership of Professor Benedict Oramah, President of Afreximbank, and delivered in strategic partnership with Kings College Hospital London under the medical direction of Professor Ghulam Mufti, formally opened its doors.

This first AMCE iteration stands as a clear demonstration of what becomes achievable when African expertise is matched with sustained, as an activation of purpose-led investment in health infrastructure and human capital. With a 500-bed capacity, West Africa’s first cyclotron for PET-CT diagnostic imaging, and an expected reach of over 350,000 patients in its first five years, the AMCE represents a return of care, confidence, and competence to African soil, a place where world-class quality healthcare is not an exception, but a standard, and where young professionals can be trained, retained, and empowered to serve their communities with excellence.

At the heart of this vision, the AMCE Foundation for Research and Development was also inaugurated with a $75 million endowment, laying the groundwork for sustained scientific advancement and regional innovation in diagnostics, therapeutics, and evidence-based practice. Equally vital is the establishment of the College of Nursing and Midwifery Excellence, which ensures that the future of African healthcare will be led not only by state-of-the-art facilities but by a highly skilled, compassionate, and well-supported workforce, grounded in local contexts and global standards.

The Wellbeing Foundation Africa recognises in the AMCE the fulfilment of a continuum we have long championed, from the frontline of maternal, newborn, and child health to the highest levels of tertiary and quaternary care; there is no area of the health system that can be left behind.

The commissioning of the African Medical Centre of Excellence sends a clear message that Africa will no longer outsource its healing, export its talent, or delay its destiny. It is an infrastructure of hope and a signal of continental self-belief, and I commend all those who have made this vision a now functioning reality.