Genesis health practice celebrates a decade of impact, charts the future of primary health care

This week, the health practice at Genesis marks its 10th anniversary, celebrating a decade of strengthening health systems across Africa and positioning itself as a leading voice on the future of primary health care.

What began in 2016 as a team of three has grown into a practice of nearly 50 experts, delivering high-impact work across African health systems. 

Shifting Health Systems

Over the past decade, the team has worked on some of the continent's most significant public health challenges, from strengthening TB services in South Africa, supporting countries to enhance HIV prevention programming, generating actionable evidence for resource mobilisation for maternal health programmes, to more recently, helping countries to navigate post-USG funding cuts.

Ten years ago, we started asking a different kind of question about Africa's health systems. Throughout this time we’ve been guided by our purpose to build strong and well-financed health systems that can deliver equitable health outcomes - Dr Saul Johnson, co-founder of the health practice

The anniversary week, held from 14–18 September in Johannesburg, is an opportunity for  team members from across South Africa, the United Kingdom, Kenya and Nigeria to mark this milestone together. 

The week culminates in a symposium on Primary Health Care in the 21st Century, host by Dr Magni and the Gates Foundation's Bridget Mahlangu. Partners, clients, and alumni join in the key question we are asking ourselves: What must we do differently as we explore the shifts that will define the next decade of health system reform?

Our team is most proud of work that is meaningful, work that improves lives across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. That's what shifting health systems really means: moving care from hospital wards into communities, from treatment-focused responses to prevention and population health, from programmes delivered to people, to health delivered by people - Dr Sarah Magni, co-founder of the health practice

Guest speakers include experts in South Africa’s public health sector: Jeannette Hunter and Fikile Ndlovu (NDOH), Yogan Pillay (Gates Foundation), Helen Schneider (University of the Western Cape), Alankar Malviya (UNAIDS) and Zameer Brey (glassbox), Fareed Abdullah (SAMRC). 

At the heart of the conversation is the ‘Left Shift’: the structural transition of healthcare away from reactive, hospital-based models toward proactive, community-embedded primary health care that leverages the digital tools of the new age.

The health practice's work over the past decade has been defined not by size, but by trust. This is trust earned in ministry corridors, in community groups, and in the rooms where care is actually delivered.

The health practice exemplifies what Genesis stands for - delivering impact at scale while earning the trust of governments, donors, and communities alike. As we look to the next ten years, their work on the 'Left Shift' will be critical to building health systems that are proactive, community-embedded, and designed around people - not programmes - Stephan Malherbe, Founder and CEO of Genesis.

Looking ahead, the practice is committed to being a trusted partner in the next decade of health system reform - reimagining what's possible and having the courage to build it.