Johannesburg, South Africa | December 5, 2025

The Africa Task Force on Brain Health—a multi-level, multisectoral coalition uniting experts from Africa’s five geopolitical regions to accelerate brain health innovation across the continent—convened African and global leaders from government, the private sector, civil society, and science on the sidelines of the G20 Ministers of Health Meeting during South Africa’s Presidency. This landmark gathering established brain health—encompassing dementia, mental health, brain trauma, and substance abuse—as a fundamental investment in Africa's economic transformation and essential to achieving the continent's Agenda 2063 vision of prosperity. 

Last week, DAC Founding Chairman George Vradenburg and Africa Task Force Chair Mie Rizig had the privilege of meeting global health leaders in the UAE to learn from the Emirati Genome Program—an initiative with the potential to shape a new global approach to Alzheimer’s disease.

The brain economy is an emerging economic belief system that asserts that brain health, both individually and collectively, is a significant driver of economic growth. According to the World Economic Forum, Brain disorders are estimated to cost the global economy $5 trillion every year. This episode of Focus On explores brain health as a driver towards global prosperity.

JOHANNESBURG – NOVEMBER 4, 2025 –The Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative(DAC), a global initiative to prevent Alzheimer’s disease and promote brain health, today launched Africa’s first-ever Brain Health Plan for Africa: a five-year continent-wide roadmap to invest in African brain capital, building a stronger, healthier workforce through brain health.

As the G-20 Health Ministers meeting takes place next week in Johannesburg, South Africa, a new global coalition is trying to put Alzheimer’s and dementia-related diseases on the priority list of the world’s major economies; and there’s one man who stands out as a driving force behind this movement. 

In this piece from Health Policy Watch, DAC Founding Chairman George Vradenburg calls for policy action in response to emerging research exploring air pollution’s impact on brain health and dementia risk.

“Expanding Alzheimer’s research in Africa could help improve care locally: Narayan believes that studying a genetically diverse population could help scientists better understand the biology of Alzheimer’s and how it interacts with the environment… and this understanding could lead to treatments that benefit people everywhere.”

The Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative (DAC), a global initiative to prevent Alzheimer’s disease and promote brain health, today announced a collaboration with the Science for Africa Foundation (SFA Foundation) to advance brain health innovation across the African continent.

Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative Founding Chairman George Vradenburg is a co-author on a new Lancet Portfolio Personal View.

Check out the latest from DAC Founding Chairman George Vradenburg in Healthcare Business Today.

DAC Founding Chairman George Vradenburg, Kelly O'Brien, and Harris Eyre emphasize that prioritizing brain health is essential to unlocking the longevity dividend—the full range of benefits from longer lives lived with better brain and physical health.

Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (ADRD) was mainly considered a global health issue in high-income countries, but this perception is rapidly changing, with recent projections indicating that by 2050, 70% of dementia cases will be in low- and middle-income countries – with Africa contributing a considerable proportion of these.

DAC’s ‘6×5’ plan was recently featured in this piece from Think Global Health.

The Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative (DAC), a worldwide initiative to prevent Alzheimer’s and improve brain health, today announced the publication of a new paper in Nature Medicine.

Teams Expand Research Across Africa; Advance Early Detection and Accurate Diagnosis, and Build Healthcare System Capacity

George Vradenburg joined the Progress, Possibilities, and Potential podcast to preview DAC’s presence at AAIC, an upcoming Africa brain health plan release, and more.

Chi‑Udeh‑Momoh, Fernando Johann, Vaibhav Narayan, Irene B. Meier, and Karen Blackmon are featured in this piece from the Global Brain Health Institute.

DAC is highlighted in this piece from the World Economic Forum, spotlighting new advances in the fight against Alzheimer’s Disease.