Three in four persons living with diabetes in Africa are unaware they have the disease, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned, raising raising concerns about late treatment and preventable complications as the disease burden continues to rise across the continent.
Mohamed Janabi, the WHO Regional Director for Africa, disclosed this in a message to mark World Diabetes Day 2026, observed on November 14, under the theme “Early Action on Diabetes”.
According to Janabi, an estimated 24.6 million adults aged 20 to 79 were living with diabetes in the WHO African Region in 2024, with the figure projected to reach 59.5 million by 2050.
He said the proportion of people with diabetes who remain undiagnosed was the highest globally, leaving millions at risk of complications, including kidney failure, blindness, cardiovascular disease and lower-limb amputations.
“Early diagnosis and timely treatment can prevent complications, reduce suffering and save lives,” Janabi said, calling on individuals, communities, governments, healthcare workers and development partners to strengthen awareness, promote early diagnosis and expand access to affordable, quality diabetes care.
He urged people to recognise the warning signs of diabetes, including increased thirst, frequent urination, unexplained weight loss, persistent tiredness and blurred vision, and seek medical advice and testing promptly.
Janabi also advised people at increased risk of the condition to undergo screening, noting that diabetes could develop without obvious symptoms.
He called on communities to promote accurate information about the disease and challenge stigma and discrimination, while encouraging people living with diabetes to share their experiences and support others to seek care.
The WHO regional director also urged healthcare workers to recognise symptoms early, provide timely testing and ensure compassionate, person-centred care to improve disease management and prevent complications.
Janabi said the WHO was supporting African countries to strengthen diabetes services at primary healthcare and first-level referral facilities through initiatives including the WHO Package of Essential Noncommunicable Disease Interventions (WHO PEN), the HEARTS technical package for cardiovascular disease, HEARTS-D for the diagnosis and management of type 2 diabetes, and the PEN-Plus regional strategy for severe noncommunicable diseases.
He commended Rwanda for achieving nationwide district-level coverage of PEN-Plus, alongside other countries making progress in implementing the programme. However, he said significant gaps remained in access to trained healthcare workers, diagnostic services, essential medicines and continuous care.
The WHO regional director called on African governments to prioritise diabetes prevention, early diagnosis and continuous treatment within primary healthcare systems and universal health coverage.
He said this would require sustained investment in public awareness, affordable insulin and essential medicines, diagnostic services, trained health workers and reliable health systems.
He also urged development partners, civil society organisations and the private sector to support government-led efforts, particularly in underserved communities.
Janabi said the WHO remained committed to supporting member states in accelerating progress towards the 2030 targets of the Framework for the Implementation of the Global Diabetes Compact in the African Region.
He urged people across the continent to learn the symptoms of diabetes, seek testing and care early, and encourage family members and friends to do the same.
