When the World Health Organization released its long-awaited global guidelines on the use of GLP 1 obesity medication, one of the people sitting around the table shaping the science, ethics and lived-experience lens was a young Kenyan health advocate whose journey began far from Geneva’s polished conference halls.

For Ogweno Stephen, a researcher, founder of Stowelink Foundation and trustee of the World Obesity Federation, this moment was personal. He was not just contributing as a technical voice. He was contributing as someone who grew up with childhood obesity in rural Kenya and fought through stigma, silence and a health system that did not yet understand obesity as a disease.

His role as a lived experience representative in the WHO Guideline Development Group for GLP 1 medicines helped anchor the global document in realities that experts often overlook. “I learnt early what it means when a health system has no language for your struggle,” he shared recently. “Obesity shaped my childhood, so working on this guideline felt like closing a painful loop.”

But the story did not end in Geneva. On December 2, 2025, Ogweno appeared on France24, breaking down what obesity truly means for Africa. His message was blunt: Africa is sitting on a “ticking time bomb.”

Africa’s New Health Crisis

Across the continent, obesity is rising faster than almost anywhere else. In 2010, adult obesity in Africa hovered around 8 percent. Today it has climbed to more than 12 percent. The picture is even darker in countries like South Africa and Seychelles, where nearly one in three adults is obese.

“It is not just a health problem. It is a social and economic crisis,” Ogweno told France24. “Africa is unique because we face under-nutrition and over-nutrition at the same time. Sometimes in the same home, a child is underweight while a parent lives with obesity. This double burden is tearing apart our health systems.”

Non-communicable diseases, driven by rising weight, are exploding. Diabetes, hypertension and heart disease are becoming everyday realities in countries still battling malaria, HIV and TB. Many African hospitals are treating strokes and kidney failure rather than tackling the root cause.

What the New WHO Guidelines Mean for Africa

The World Health Organization’s updated guidelines on GLP 1 medications are a turning point. For the first time, obesity treatment is being recognized as a legitimate medical necessity.

“These medications have moved from luxury lifestyle products to life-saving tools,” Ogweno explained. “The guidelines validate the need, but access will be a battle.”

The essential medicines listing opens the door for African governments to negotiate prices, fast-track generic production and reframe obesity as a chronic disease rather than a cosmetic issue. But cost and distribution pose major hurdles. Many GLP 1 drugs require cold storage, yet rural clinics across the continent struggle to keep even vaccines cold.

Ogweno insists that Africa will need pooled procurement, similar to the collaborative approach that transformed access to HIV drugs. “That is how we will break this barrier,” he said. “No single country can do it alone.”

A Kenyan Advocate on the World Stage

Ogweno’s presence on the WHO guideline panel is part of a wider footprint. Earlier in the year, he represented Kenya at the World Health Assembly where he spoke to Al Jazeera about obesity’s global trajectory, the power of food industry regulation and the urgency of access to new treatments.

His work reflects a rare combination of global influence and community-grounded action.

Through Stowelink Foundation, he has led some of Africa’s most creative public health programs: digital NCD campaigns in ten countries, board games that teach children about lifestyle diseases, and youth-driven primary healthcare programs that have reached more than 1.6 million people. As a Kenyan health advocate, his message blends science, storytelling and lived experience in ways that global institutions are just learning to value.

What This Moment Means for Kenya

Kenya is not spared from the global trend. Urban lifestyles, changing diets, economic pressures and limited access to preventive care have fueled a sharp rise in childhood and adult obesity. Many Kenyan families still do not see obesity as a medical condition. Treatment remains expensive and inaccessible.

Ogweno sees the WHO guidelines as a historic opportunity. “If Kenya uses these guidelines well,” he says, “we can save families from watching their loved ones slip into diabetes or kidney failure. We can shift the system from crisis response to prevention.”

A Childhood Struggle Becomes a Continental Mission

For those who know his story, the symbolism is powerful. A boy who once faced teasing and silence because of his weight now shapes global policy and speaks for millions who do not yet have a voice.

“This is why lived experience matters,” he says. “I want every child in Kenya who is battling obesity today to know that their story can change. Their life can change. And their health system must change with them.”

From Geneva to New York to Nairobi, Ogweno Stephen has become one of Africa’s most compelling voices on the future of obesity care. The road ahead is long, but his message is clear. The continent can no longer afford to treat obesity as a side conversation. It is a defining health challenge of this generation.

And Kenya, through one of its own, is finally seated at the table.

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