ABSTRACT:
Global health increasingly depends on the effective sharing and coordination of data across institutions, countries, and regions. Yet many low- and middle-income countries remain participants in global health collaborations without meaningful influence over data governance, infrastructure design, or which priorities are set. This imbalance threatens the sustainability of partnerships and limits the benefit that national and regional health systems can gain from shared data resources. The recently launched African Bioinformatics Institute (ABI) aims to address these challenges by supporting African-led health data governance through workforce development, data infrastructure development and institutional collaboration. Working in partnership with African institutions to co-design the data systems they rely on, ABI helps ensure that data remain locally governed and are used responsibly and ethically. This includes supporting the development of Trusted Research Environments (TREs), which enable secure access to sensitive datasets without unnecessary or uncontrolled data movement, and promoting federated analysis models that support cross-institutional research while data remain locally hosted. Through collaboration with partner initiatives such as the eLwazi Open Data Science Platform and the African Genomics Data Hub, ABI contributes to the development and hosting of African-based biomedical data platforms, analytical tools, and shared services. These efforts reduce reliance on external infrastructure, strengthen regional data stewardship and promote local ownership. They are reinforced by training programmes and communities of practice that build expertise in data governance, standards, and collaborative workflows. More equitable global health collaboration requires moving beyond “transactional” data-sharing arrangements toward inclusive governance models that recognise local expertise and institutional leadership. ABI aims to demonstrate how African-led data and coordination platforms can contribute to more equitable, effective, and sustainable global health partnerships, particularly in data-intensive and cross-border public health initiatives.