East Africa eyes role of medical tourism hub

East African countries are seeking to position the region as a medical tourism destination by linking their healthcare systems, sharing specialized expertise and creating common standards that could give patients greater confidence in seeking treatment within the region.

Health leaders and private sector representatives speaking at a side event of the 13th East Africa Healthcare Federation Conference and International Exhibition in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, over the past weekend, said the region already has important pieces of a medical tourism market, but needs stronger cooperation, investment and easier cross-border movement to turn them into a regional proposition.

The discussions highlighted the need for East African countries to work together rather than develop isolated centers of excellence, with speakers saying individual countries may struggle to provide and sustain every specialized medical service on their own.

Kanyenje Gakombe, chairman of the Kenya Healthcare Federation, said that medical travel presents an opportunity for East Africa's health sector, particularly the private sector, but the region needs to understand why patients continue to seek care outside their countries.

He identified gaps in specialized care, affordability and privacy among factors driving patients abroad, while noting that individual countries often lack the population base needed to sustain expensive centers of excellence.

"Together we are 500 million people. Together we can deliver economies of scope and scale," Gakombe said, arguing that regional cooperation could help countries mobilize the technology, capital and expertise required for specialized care.

Gakombe said the COVID-19 pandemic offered another lesson for the region, demonstrating the risks of depending on overseas destinations for specialized treatment when international borders can suddenly close.

He argued that building regional capacity would therefore serve both medical tourism and health system resilience. "Borders can be closed, and therefore resilience and the capacity to provide care must be built here," he said.

Medical tourism is already emerging in East Africa, although it remains relatively small and fragmented. Globally, about 14 million people travel internationally for medical treatment each year, according to an estimate by the Global Medical Tourism Association, reflecting growing demand for care that may be unavailable or unaffordable in patients' home countries.

East Africa is also seeing patients cross borders for treatment. Tanzania's former health minister Jenista Mhagama told the parliament in June last year that the number of international patients seeking treatment in the country had more than doubled, from 5,705 in 2021 to 12,180 between January and March 2025. Most of the patients came from African countries, including South Africa, Ethiopia and Kenya, she said.

Kenya, which boasts several advanced medical institutions, is similarly attracting patients from across the region. Data from Kenya's Tourism Sector Performance Report 2024 showed that about 7,944 people from the East African Community traveled to Kenya for medical reasons that year.

For Ethiopia, medical tourism is increasingly being viewed as more than a health sector issue. Endegena Abebe, Ethiopia's state minister for tourism, described it as a "new form of high-value tourism market" and said the country has developed a 10-year medical tourism and wellness model.

He said Ethiopia's approach includes improving hospital accreditation and quality assurance while creating incentives to attract investment into the sector.

Regional connectivity

A key priority, Abebe said, is to create a seamless patient journey that connects medical facilities with visa services, airports, accommodation and support for accompanying family members. "We need to integrate that one with different regions, with different sectors," he said, stressing the need to connect the different stages of a patient's journey.

He said Ethiopia is also considering changes to medical visa arrangements, including longer-term and multiple-entry options, as part of the efforts to make the country more accessible to medical travelers.

Egina Francis Makwabe, president of the Association of Private Health Facilities in Tanzania, said East Africa needs a stronger "Made in Africa" approach to medical tourism. He said the region must first build confidence among its own populations by ensuring that local facilities offer quality care at competitive prices.

He also called for a regional platform that would allow patients to identify hospitals, specialties and treatments available in different countries.

Makwabe said some advanced services already exist in East Africa but remain poorly known outside the countries where they are offered.

Edgar Kalimba, board chairman of Africa Health Sciences University in Rwanda, said East Africa's challenge is not necessarily a shortage of medical talent, but the creation of an environment that encourages highly trained African specialists working abroad to return and practice in the region.

He also called for easier movement across borders, including fewer visa restrictions, arguing that existing air links provided by Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways and RwandAir could support greater regional medical travel.

sharon@chinadailyafrica.com