Nature, in collaboration with the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative (DAC) and the Aga Khan University (AKU), will host The Future of Dementia in Africa: Advancing Global Partnerships conference in Kenya in September 2024. The event will provide a platform to unite scientists and communities, in the search for accessible solutions. Genetic diversity in Africa means that one can potentially identify modifiable risk factors for neurodegeneration. Africa offers researchers a much larger pool of younger subjects than, for example, Europe or the Americas which have far larger elderly populations. The opportunity to study so many people experiencing mild cognitive decline from the age of 50 years, and then follow them for the next 20 years while managing their blood pressure, diabetes and other risk factors, could be transformational.