Digital Health Convergence Workshop in South Africa 2026

Johannesburg, South Africa—With support from The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the National Department of Health (NDoH), in collaboration with the Asia eHealth Information Network (AeHIN), convened a two-part Digital Health Convergence Workshop on 8 and 9 July 2026 at Birchwood Hotel & OR Tambo Conference Centre, and on 14 and 15 July 2026 at aha Kopanong Hotel & Conference Centre.

The workshop recorded average daily attendance of 82 participants, ranging from 71 to 89 participants per day. Participants represented the national and provincial government, the private sector, non-government organizations, and academia. The primary objective was to align national digital health priorities and advance NDoH’s commitment to an integrated, people-centred digital health ecosystem that supports equitable access to quality care for all South Africans. A key takeaway was that achieving the long-term vision of “one person, one record, one connected system,” requires a clear implementation pathway and consistent, sustained efforts across stakeholders.

The convergence workshop is the first of its kind facilitated by the AeHIN outside Asia. AeHIN facilitated the workshop using its established Convergence Workshop approach. The workshop was guided by AeHIN’s ‘Mind the GAPS, Fill the GAPS framework’, which focuses on governance, architecture, people & programme management, and standards & interoperability (GAPS). The workshop began with an introduction to the framework and a working definition of digital health to establish a common understanding of key concepts.