Only 19 African countries meet death reporting threshold, new report finds
Many African countries still struggle to record deaths, determine their causes and analyse health information needed to guide healthcare services, raising concerns about the ability of health authorities to identify preventable health risks and respond effectively.
A new World Health Organization (WHO) report assessing 40 countries in the African Region found that only 19 countries reported notifying authorities of at least 80% of deaths, while just 21 recorded the causes of death for at least 80% of registered deaths.
The findings highlight weaknesses in health information systems that governments rely on to understand population health needs, identify emerging threats and determine where healthcare resources are most urgently needed.
The report, titled The Maturity and Functionality of Health Information Systems in the WHO African Region, also found that only 43% of countries had sufficient capacity to analyse health data at health facility level, while just 25% had adequate capacity to assess data quality at that level.
These gaps can make it difficult for health facilities and authorities to identify weaknesses in healthcare delivery, monitor disease trends and determine where additional medical staff, equipment and other resources are required.
“When we do not know why people are dying, which children are missing essential services or where communities face the greatest health risks, we may overlook the very people who need our attention most. Countries have made important progress in collecting health data, but information must lead to action,” said Dr Mohamed Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa.
He called for greater investment, skilled professionals and improved coordination to ensure that reliable health information informs decisions that prevent avoidable deaths and improve healthcare.
The assessment, conducted in 2024 across 40 of the WHO African Region’s 47 Member States, gave the region’s health information systems an overall maturity score of 59 out of 100.
The findings were presented at the First Africa Health Data Forum, held in Nairobi, Kenya, from 10 to 12 November 2026.
Individual country scores ranged from 26 to 93, reflecting significant differences in countries’ ability to collect, manage and use health information.
Funding and digital health challenges
Financing and governance were also identified as major weaknesses. Only 18% of the countries assessed had a dedicated budget line for health information systems, while 35% had an up-to-date national policy guiding their development.
The report further identified gaps in coordination, routine data-quality checks and the availability of trained professionals, which could undermine efforts to build and maintain reliable systems.
Although 43 of the African Region’s 47 Member States have adopted digital platforms for collecting and reporting routine health information, the transition to more integrated digital healthcare systems remains limited.
Only 20% of countries participating in the assessment reported implementing digital patient medical records, while fewer than half had established frameworks allowing different health information systems to exchange data.
This means information collected by hospitals, laboratories and other health services may remain disconnected, limiting the ability of health authorities to obtain a complete picture of population health needs.
Country experiences show the value of reliable data
The report highlights experiences from Zimbabwe and Nigeria to demonstrate how improvements in health information can support better healthcare decisions.
In Zimbabwe, maternal and perinatal death reporting previously depended on paper-based records that could take weeks or months to reach decision-makers, delaying the identification of preventable risks.
In Nigeria’s Bauchi State, health authorities used vaccination data and community-level information to identify children who had missed routine immunisation and target communities with limited access to vaccination services.
The examples demonstrate how timely and reliable information can help authorities identify gaps in healthcare delivery and reach underserved populations.
To address some of the challenges, WHO launched the Regional Health Data Hub in August 2026, a digital platform designed to bring together information from different health programmes.
The platform aims to make health information easier to access, analyse and compare, helping decision-makers monitor health trends, identify underserved populations and direct resources towards areas with the greatest needs.
About The Author
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
