African Leadership and Global Health Advocacy; A Journey of growth, change, sustainability and success for the COMPASS Coalition

The Coalition to build Momentum, Power, Activism, Strategy & Solidarity in Africa
(COMPASS) has finalized a transformative and power-sharing approach to the
governance and leadership of South-North coalitions. This new approach represents
innovation that harnesses the power of the coalition. It is redefining and
strengthening South-North relationships, and it offers a model for a field seeking to
decolonize global health. The effort was built on a founding principle of power-
sharing, and a commitment that COMPASS would ultimately be led by an African-
based organization. Pursuing this vision has involved a multi-year, member-led
process for creating a participatory governance framework. And it has resulted in
reimagining COMPASS leadership, with African organizations in control.
This case study explores the COMPASS approach that made these changes
possible, the growing pains that informed the process for instituting change, and
what others can learn from this experience.
What is COMPASS?
COMPASS was founded in 2017 as a data and evidence-based South-North civil
society coalition. The coalition from its beginnings has been dedicated to advancing
strategic advocacy campaigns to influence policies, programs, and funding for the
HIV response in East and Southern Africa, with a particular focus on Malawi,
Tanzania, and Zimbabwe, and at the global level. In December 2023, Pangaea
Zimbabwe signed a new two-year, $4.9 million grant agreement with the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation as the new secretariat of COMPASS Africa, a role
previously served by AVAC. In recent years, AVAC was part of a coalition-wide effort
to develop a clear transition plan for COMPASS to be led by African civil society
organizations.
Since 2017, with a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 29 COMPASS
partner organizations have launched dozens of campaigns and logged 31 significant
advocacy wins, with many multi-year campaigns still in progress. To name just a few
of the wins from COMPASS campaigns:
Read more: https://avac.org/resource/african-leadership-and-global-health-
advocacy/