Ethiopia
Ethiopia is a beautiful, very rural country, with an ancient culture and heritage. Never colonized, it is the oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world, with deep roots in both Islam and Christianity. With 75 million people – the second most populous nation in Africa – it plays an important role in the future stability and prosperity of the continent. Improving the health of Ethiopians is a critical part of that future.
Ethiopia faces many health challenges. Pregnancy is still very risky for women – 25,000 women die every year in pregnancy and childbirth. Too many infants, 8 of every 100, die in their first year. HIV and AIDS are taking a toll, with an estimated 3 million adults and 95,000 children younger than 15 living with HIV. Life expectancy is about 50 years. The country is striving to address these challenges and give all its citizens a greater opportunity for health and well-being.
IntraHealth is working with local partners to address the fact that many Ethiopians have little or no access to modern health care services. Our mission in the country is to increase the availability of quality health care services, and to do so in a lasting and sustainable way. Our strategy includes developing the capacity of Ethiopia’s health systems nationally to provide HIV-prevention services and address the issue of tuberculosis co-infection, while at the same time systematically improving the existing maternal and child health care services. Our efforts are:
- Helping women deliver healthy, HIV-negative babies and to get the follow-up services needed to keep themselves and their babies healthy
- Helping women with obstetric fistula get surgical repair
- Reaching employees at work in private companies with HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis services
- Helping communities advocate against female genital cutting.
IntraHealth has worked with the Ministry of Health and clinic and community leaders to:
- Reach more than 100,000 mothers in 248 public health centers with prevention-of-mother-to-child- transmission (PMTCT) counseling, and 50,000 with HIV testing services
- Implement a pilot project in the Amhara region designed to support fistula prevention and identification, repair and rehabilitation and increase skilled care at birth
- Train providers on the job and improve the physical surroundings, equipment and processes in clinics that offer maternal and child health care services
- Increase access to affordable, high-quality HIV/AIDS and TB prevention and care services
- Encourage the abandonment of female genital cutting through a multi-faceted approach that focuses especially on community and religious leaders.
Donor/Projects: USAID (Capacity Project, PSP-One/Fenote Tesfa Project, ACQUIRE Project, Extending Service Delivery Project, Prevention Of Mother To Child Transmission Project, HIV/AIDS Care and Support Program)
Partners, Capacity Project: JHPIEGO
Partners, PMTCT Project: Management Sciences for Health (MSH) Rational Pharmaceutical Management Plus (RPM+) Program
Partners, PSP-One/Fenote Tesfa Project: Abt Associates (lead)
Partners, ACQUIRE Project: EngenderHealth (lead), Pathfinder International
Partners, Extending Service Delivery Project: Pathfinder International (lead)
Partners, Ethiopia HIV/AIDS Care and Support Program: Management Sciences for Health (lead)
Selected health statistics for Ethiopia (WHO, accessed July 2007):
Life expectancy, in years (m/f): 50, 53
Probability of dying under 5 years of age (per 100 live births): 164
Adult prevalence of HIV/AIDS: 2.8–6.7%
Maternal mortality (per 100,000 live births): 871