Scientists note that only about 0.15% of participants in large genetic studies are from Africa, leaving a gap in knowledge that affects diagnosis for African patients.

Tunisia, Egypt and Senegal have already launched national initiatives, while Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa are in earlier development stages.

Tunisia’s plan includes sequencing both healthy volunteers and patients to differentiate benign variants from disease‑linked changes.

Egypt aims for a large‑scale cohort to study common and rare diseases, though it faces the challenge of converting data volume into actionable healthcare capacity.

Senegal’s project will sample individuals from 31 ethnolinguistic groups across all 14 regions to avoid under‑representation of any population segment.

The authors of a recent paper stress that successful projects must pair sequencing with local expertise, clear data‑governance rules and sustained funding.

Key governance steps include defining health questions, involving communities in design, and establishing consent, privacy and data‑access policies before sample collection.

Budgets need to cover not only sequencing costs but also training, secure data infrastructure and personnel to interpret results, ensuring long‑term utility.

The projects aim to improve diagnostic clarity for inherited conditions, help families understand disease risk, and inform why medicines may work differently among African patients.

However, sequencing alone is insufficient; without capacity to analyse and translate findings, the health impact will be limited.

The authors argue that projects should start at a sustainable scale, focus on locally relevant health issues, and expand through regional cooperation and long‑term funding.

Success will be measured not by the number of genomes sequenced but by improvements in test interpretation, clearer answers for families, and stronger local expertise that endures beyond the sequencing phase.