Strategic Framework

STRATEGIC & ETHICAL FRAMEWORK

Afrolongevity: An Initiative of TAFFD’s
Effective Date: April 19, 2025
Version 1.0

 

  1. Purpose of This Document

This Strategic & Ethical Framework defines the guiding principles, philosophical commitments, scientific priorities, and operational ethics of Afrolongevity, Africa’s pioneering movement in longevity science and life-extension innovation.

It is intended to serve as:

  1. A compass for internal decision-making
  1. A declaration of our institutional character
  2. A touchstone for partners, funders, governments, and communities

 

  1. Our Foundational Premise

Afrolongevity believes that aging is not merely a biological condition—it is a solvable inequality. We affirm that healthy lifespan extension, grounded in African knowledge systems, ethical science, and inclusive technology, is both possible and necessary.

We are not simply extending life; we are expanding the horizon of dignity, vitality, and justice across generations.

 

  1. Our Strategic Objectives
  2. Scientific Equity

To advance cutting-edge longevity science and regenerative health innovations tailored to African contexts—genetic, cultural, nutritional, and ecological.

  1. Policy and Governance Leadership

To influence national, continental, and global aging and healthspan policies, positioning Africa not as a recipient of frameworks but as a co-architect of biofutures.

  1. Health Sovereignty and Intrinsic Capacity

To redefine health not merely as the absence of disease, but as the presence of resilience, agency, and biodiversity-aligned living.

  1. Open, Participatory Knowledge

To democratize research, learning, and data so that communities are knowledge-makers, not just beneficiaries.

  1. Legacy-Driven Partnerships

To collaborate only with entities that respect our values and promote regenerative, post-extractive science rooted in human and planetary dignity.

  1. Our Ethical Commitments

Afrolongevity operates within a strict ethical frame that includes—but is not limited to—the following:

  1. Human Dignity

We uphold dignity as the highest non-negotiable value. No scientific progress is valid if it undermines the worth of people or communities.

  1. Cultural Integrity

We reject biopiracy, ethnoscience erasure, and epistemic exploitation. Indigenous and traditional health knowledge must be protected, honored, and cited as intellectual property.

  1. Intergenerational Equity

Our work must benefit not only this generation but those unborn. Youth engagement and elder protection are co-pillars of our practice.

  1. Ecological Alignment

We recognize Africa’s biodiversity as a living health infrastructure. All research must be aligned with sustainability and environmental stewardship.

  1. Informed Consent and Community Ownership

All data, images, stories, or participation must be based on Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC), and communities must have ongoing say over their contributions.

  1. Strategic Alignment with Global Standards

Afrolongevity aligns its operations with:

  1. The Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights (UNESCO)
  1. The Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-Sharing
  2. The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights
  3. The WHO Global Strategy on Aging and Health
  4. The SDGs (particularly Goals 3, 9, 10, and 17)

However, we reserve the right to reinterpret or reject frameworks that undermine Africa’s sovereignty, knowledge systems, or cultural agency.

 

  1. Partnership Philosophy

We seek collaborators who:

  1. View Africa as a source of solutions, not merely need
  1. Are committed to decolonizing health systems
  2. Agree to fair intellectual property sharing
  3. Respect traditional authorities and communities
  4. Contribute knowledge, resources, or access—not extractive visibility

All strategic partnerships will be vetted through our Ethics and Strategic Alignment Committee (ESAC).

 

  1. Decision-Making Principles

Afrolongevity’s leadership, programs, and operations will be guided by:

  1. Transparency over secrecy
  1. Collective wisdom over hierarchical decrees
  2. Foresight over urgency
  3. Long-term benefit over short-term prestige
  4. Community-anchored innovation over donor-driven agendas

 

  1. Monitoring and Review

This framework will be reviewed annually by the Office of the COO, the Board of Directors of TAFFD’s, and relevant community stakeholders. Revisions may be proposed when:

  1. There is a significant shift in global health or scientific ethics
  1. A major conflict or contradiction arises in implementation
  2. A new frontier of knowledge or risk emerges

 

  1. Final Declaration

Afrolongevity is not a charity. It is a new ethical system for human flourishing emerging from African soil. We do not ask for inclusion in global frameworks—we build our own, rooted in dignity, science, philosophy, and responsibility.

This document is both a map and a mirror: a commitment to how we will act, and how we expect to be seen.

 

Authorized by:
Ósìnákáchī Àkùmà Kálū
Co-founder & Chief Operations Officer
Afrolongevity – A TAFFD’s Initiative