Ethiopia News

“My name is Kitaw Teklemariam. My daughter was only two years old while I was diagnosed as a TB patient at the age of 40. The problem I had been dealing with was not only my health; I was also confronted by the stigma from my family and the community. That touched me very deeply. Thank you I am alive now because of the affordable care I found in the country and the improved management of Drug Resistant Tuberculosis (DR TB) cases that provided me a good quality of care to save my life. I am grateful for doing the sensitization in different regions by sharing my story as a survival and promoting the TB program that benefits TB patients and the communities with little cognizance. 

Ethiopia commemorated World TB Day on 24th March 2019 in Afar region Samara town. The theme of World TB Day for 2019 is ‘It is time to end TB’ that puts the accent on the urgency to act on the commitments made by global leaders to scale up access to prevention and treatment; to build accountability; to ensure sufficient and sustainable financing including for research; to promote an end to stigma and discrimination, and promote an equitable, rights-based and people-centered TB response. TB is one of the top 10 causes of death worldwide and the leading cause from a single infectious agent (above HIV/AIDS). Millions of people continue to fall sick with TB each year. In 2017, TB caused an estimated 1.3 million deaths among HIV-negative people and there were an additional 300 000 deaths from TB. 

The Federal Ministry of Health of Ethiopia launched the National Action Plan for Health Security (NAPHS) 2019 – 2023. In a colorful ceremony, the plan was launched by HE Mr Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.  The Plan, which was developed based on the Joint External Evaluation conducted in 2016, sets a primary goal of achieving a secured capacity that ensures community resilience for public health threats and their impact. The plan puts three strategic pillars which will help the country achieve its mission and vision in line with prevention, detection, and response of public health threats. These are:  •    Preparedness and Coordination  •    Detection Capacity and Communication •    Response Capacity

Addis Ababa 13 March 2019: The National Action Plan for Health Security (NAPHS) is a country owned, multi-year planning process that will accelerate the implementation of International Health Regulation (IHR) core capacities, and is based on a One Health for all-hazards, whole-government approach. The NAPHS captures the national priorities for health security, brings sectors together, identifies partners and allocates resources for health security capacity development.

Addis Ababa, 12th March 2019. Ethiopia’s National Health Care Quality Strategy for 2016-2020 placed Maternal, Newborn and Child Health as a priority with the ambitious goals to reduce the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) from 412 to 199 per 100,000 live births by 2020; to reduce the neonatal mortality rate (NMR) from 28 to 10 per 1,000 live births by 2020 and reduce stillbirth rate from 18 to 10 per 1000 births by 2020.

African Vaccine Regulatory Forum (AVAREF) was established by WHO in 2006 as a network of National Regulatory Authorities (NRAs) and Ethics Committees (ECs) of African countries providing a platform for building regulatory capacity and promoting harmonization of practices in support of oversight of clinical trials in the region. AVAREF has since played a crucial role in the successful development of several vaccines, notably the meningococcal A conjugate vaccine, whose licensure and rollout has dramatically reduced epidemics of meningococcal A meningitis. The capacity of AVAREF has now been broadened beyond vaccines and includes medicines.

Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) had a dialogue on women’s health with a theme “Meeting Women’s Health Needs in Ethiopia; Challenges and Opportunities” in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 15th February 2019. The meeting was organized by the ECA, AU Department for Social Affairs and WHO, in collaboration with Ethiopian Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), the Ethiopian Ministries of Gender and Health, UNDP, UNICEF, UNAIDs, and UNWOMEN.

The First FAO/WHO/AU International Food Safety Conference started today in Addis Ababa in Mandela hall of the African Union Headquarters conference center. This joint conference brought together Ministers of Health, Ministers of Agriculture, leading scientific experts, partner agencies as well as representatives of consumers, food producers and distributors. The conference aimed to identify key actions and strategies to address current and future challenges to food safety globally and to strengthen commitment at the highest political level to scale up food safety in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Addis Ababa 11th Feb. 2019: Ethiopia launched measles vaccine second dose (MCV2) vaccination into the routine immunization programme in the second year of life. The official launching was celebrated at Wolenchity Health Center, Bosete Woreda of Oromia Region on 11th February 2019. The launching event was attended by Government higher officials and representativeness from different stakeholders and partners including Gavi, the Vacine Aliance, the Global Fund, WHO and UNICEF.