The World Health Organization’s African Region (WHO AFRO) hosted the Third International Conference on PEN-Plus in Africa (ICPPA 2026) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, in June 2026, bringing together health systems leaders, clinicians, and policymakers to assess progress in scaling accessible care for severe noncommunicable diseases across the continent. The conference builds on the momentum of the inaugural 2024 gathering in the same city and the 2025 technical meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, establishing a growing platform for knowledge exchange on integrated disease management in resource-limited settings.
Key takeaways
- PEN-Plus represents a continuation of WHO AFRO’s programmatic effort to integrate management of severe NCDs in African health systems, building on established frameworks from two prior international conferences
- The conference series demonstrates sustained momentum, with three consecutive annual gatherings (2024, 2025, 2026) indicating organisational commitment to scaling integrated NCD services
- Focus remains on practical health system strengthening for conditions including diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and chronic respiratory illness in under-resourced African settings
PEN-Plus Conference Series Growth
Three annual international conferences advancing noncommunicable disease management in Africa, 2024–2026
Source: WHO AFRO, 2026 | Georgian Medical Journal News
Building on Established Momentum in Tanzanian Leadership
The decision to return to Dar es Salaam for the 2026 conference underscores the importance of the inaugural 2024 gathering in establishing the ICPPA as a flagship platform for global health systems advancement in Africa. According to WHO AFRO, the return to Tanzania reflects the success of the first convening and institutional commitment to anchoring the conference series in established regional centres of health systems innovation. The conference programme focuses on practical implementation of the PEN-Plus framework, which addresses the integration of prevention, essential drugs, and task-shifting approaches for managing severe noncommunicable diseases in primary and secondary care settings across resource-limited contexts.
Bridging East and West African Health System Experience
The 2025 ICPPA held in Abuja, Nigeria, documented by WHO AFRO leadership, provided a technical platform for West African health systems to showcase scaling experiences and evidence from national PEN-Plus implementations. This year’s return to Tanzania positions the conference as a rotating hub that captures both regional expertise and emerging best practices from diverse African epidemiological and health system contexts. The conference format—spanning two years between East African (Tanzania) and West African (Nigeria) settings—enables health systems to learn from geographically proximate implementation models while maintaining a continental perspective on severe NCD management.
Integration of Severe NCD Care in African Health Systems
According to WHO AFRO’s framework documentation, PEN-Plus addresses a critical gap in African health systems: the systematic integration of diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up care for conditions including severe hypertension, acute coronary syndromes, decompensated heart failure, uncontrolled diabetes, and acute exacerbations of chronic respiratory disease. The conference provides a structured venue for clinicians and systems managers to share standardised protocols, task-shifting models, and supply chain solutions that enable secondary-level facilities—often the highest tier of care accessible to rural and peri-urban African populations—to manage life-threatening presentations of chronic disease. This focus reflects recognition that most African health systems operate with limited specialist capacity and that effective integration at the secondary level can prevent unnecessary referrals and improve survival for severe NCD presentations.
The Third International Conference on PEN-Plus in Africa represents sustained institutional commitment to scaling integrated management of severe noncommunicable diseases, with consecutive annual convenings in 2024, 2025, and 2026 establishing a durable platform for health systems learning and knowledge exchange.
— WHO African Region, 2026
What this means
Frequently asked questions
What is PEN-Plus and how does it differ from earlier PEN frameworks?
PEN-Plus, according to WHO documentation, is an evolution of the earlier Package of Essential Noncommunicable Diseases interventions (PEN). PEN-Plus specifically targets severe, acute presentations of chronic disease—such as acute decompensated heart failure or acute coronary syndrome—at the secondary level, enabling facilities without full ICU or interventional capacity to stabilise and manage these presentations using simplified protocols and essential drugs. This extends WHO’s NCD prevention and management focus to the acute crisis point where mortality risk is highest.
Why does the conference rotate between Tanzania and Nigeria?
Tanzania and Nigeria represent the two largest regional health systems in East and West Africa respectively, with substantial experience implementing integrated NCD programmes. Rotating the conference between these hubs enables each region’s health systems to learn from geographically proximate implementation models—similar epidemiology, supply chain infrastructure, and workforce profiles—while maintaining a continental platform for cross-regional exchange. This geographic strategy maximises the relevance and applicability of shared learning.
How does PEN-Plus implementation affect rural and remote African communities?
By standardising acute care protocols for severe NCDs at the secondary level, PEN-Plus reduces the necessity for emergency transfers to distant tertiary centres. Rural populations gain access to life-saving interventions for heart attack, stroke, and severe diabetes at district or regional hospitals, reducing treatment delays and transportation costs. This aligns with WHO universal health coverage principles by improving geographic equity in access to emergency NCD care.
The PEN-Plus initiative and its expanding conference platform reflect a maturing recognition across African health systems that severe noncommunicable diseases represent a critical, time-sensitive health burden requiring systematic clinical protocols and health system investment at the secondary level. As African countries continue to navigate the epidemiological transition toward NCD dominance while managing infectious disease persistence, structured platforms for knowledge exchange on integrated acute and chronic disease management will remain essential to improving population survival and health equity across the continent.
Source: PEN-Plus: Delivering Healthcare and Hope to People Living with Severe Noncommunicable Diseases in Africa, WHO African Region, June 2026
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