AIHA is pleased to announce a new award from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) to strengthen primary health care in Ethiopia by building capacity within the International Institute for Primary Health Care – Ethiopia (IIfPHC-E).
The IIfPHC-E was established by the Ministry of Health – Ethiopia to strengthen Ethiopia’s Primary Health Care (PHC) system in the context of achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for health. It does this by serving as a global resource for PHC, building capacity through training and information sharing, carrying out health systems implementation research, and contributing to the global advocacy for UHC through PHC. It is expected that the Institute will be transformed into a Center of Excellence in PHC Training, Advocacy, and Evidence Generation, and ultimately serve as the first WHO Collaborative Center on the African continent. Dr. Frehiwot Nigatu, the Acting Executive Director of the IIfPHC-E commented “Through leveraging the existing capabilities and expertise of the Institute coupled with additional twinning partnerships brought by AIHA, the project will create a tremendous opportunity to advance our vision.”
In signing the agreement, David Greeley, AIHA’s President & CEO said “AIHA will leverage our vast experience over the past almost 30 years globally and 15 years in Ethiopia in establishing twinning partnerships to strengthen IIfPHC’s capacity.” Kidest Hailu, AIHA’s Country Director in Ethiopia added “AIHA will also work on developing core trainers who will take the program forward and support the establishment of regional hubs to replicate the PHC training in their respective regions.”
AIHA has partnered with the Gates Foundation in Ethiopia on a number of projects since 2016. In addition to this award, the BMGF also increased its funding to AIHA to support the FMOH for a fifth year in a project whose goal is to support efforts to strengthen the capacity of the Ethiopia Federal Ministry of Health to implement its country’s Health Sector Transformation Plan.
About AIHA
Since AIHA was founded in 1992, it has engaged about 220 leading academic institutions, hospitals, clinical centers of excellence, professional societies and associations, and a broad and diverse range of health professionals in the global health sector. We have established more than 175 partnerships in sub-Saharan Africa, Central, and Eastern Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean to strengthen health systems and improve human resources for health using the WHO multi-pillar approach. AIHA has operated in 42 countries since its inception. AIHA has also helped strengthen host country institutions in many countries, including assisting them on the path towards becoming independent and self-sufficient entities. AIHA established numerous twinning partnerships around the world on a wide range of public health initiatives, including in the area of primary health care.