Rizig Mie, McLaughlin Connor, Narayan Vaibhav A, Salama Mohamed, Udeh-Momoh Chinedu T, Rwafa-Madzvamutse Chido Ratidzai, Gichu Muthoni, Ojagbemi Akin, Guerchet Maëlenn, Bitanihirwe Byron, Mbakile-Mahlanza Lingani, Gyasi Razak, Mostert Cyprian M, Ali Awadelkareem Mosab, Fall Mouly, Njamnshi Alfred K, Akinyemi Rufus, Kalaria Raj, Gouider Riadh, Holzapfel Drew, Merali Zul, Tollman Stephen, Eyre Harris A, Ogunniyi Adesola, Vradenburg George
Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, UK.
Davos Alzheimer's Collaborative, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Nat Med. 2025 Aug 7. doi: 10.1038/s41591-025-03863-9.
Africa stands at a decisive moment in which urgent action is essential to safeguard its brain health and economic stability. While Africa's population remains predominantly young, it is expanding and aging rapidly. This demographic shift is projected to drive a sharp rise in neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's, with profound health and economic costs-but brain health research, policy, funding and care across the continent remain critically underdeveloped. In this Perspective, we examine key trends in aging and brain health across Africa and introduce the 6 × 5 Plan-a 5-year strategic framework developed through collective multi-stakeholder insights-to address this pressing challenge. The plan targets six high-impact priorities: strengthening advocacy and health literacy, positioning brain health as a socioeconomic driver, breaking down silos of people and data, repurposing local resources, investing in artificial intelligence and digital health, and boosting research funding. To ensure effective implementation and long-term sustainability, the plan will be executed through a pan-African, multisectoral task force. This initiative seeks to accelerate Africa's response to the needs of a changing population and position the continent as a global leader in brain health innovation.
非洲正处于一个决定性时刻，此时采取紧急行动对于保障其脑健康和经济稳定至关重要。虽然非洲人口仍以年轻人为主，但人口正在迅速增长和老龄化。预计这一人口结构转变将导致包括阿尔茨海默病在内的神经退行性疾病急剧增加，带来巨大的健康和经济成本——然而，整个非洲大陆的脑健康研究、政策、资金和护理仍极度落后。在这篇观点文章中，我们审视了非洲老龄化和脑健康的关键趋势，并介绍了“6×5计划”——一个通过多方利益相关者的集体见解制定的为期5年的战略框架，以应对这一紧迫挑战。该计划针对六个具有重大影响的优先事项：加强宣传和健康素养，将脑健康定位为社会经济驱动力，打破人员和数据的孤立状态，重新利用当地资源，投资人工智能和数字健康，以及增加研究资金。为确保有效实施和长期可持续性，该计划将通过一个泛非多部门特别工作组来执行。这一倡议旨在加速非洲对不断变化的人口需求的应对，并使非洲大陆成为脑健康创新的全球领导者。
