Ethiopia News

The external assessment team that conducted the final Polio outbreak assessment in Ethiopia on 8-12 June 2015 confirmed that Ethiopia has successfully interrupted polio transmission. This encouraging conclusion was received nearly two years after the outbreak was confirmed in the Horn of Africa and outbreak activities initiated to respond to and interrupt Polio transmission.

Addis Ababa. 29 December 2014 – Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and the World Health Organization Country Office for Ethiopia (WCO) joined forces in the effort to heighten Ebola virus disease (EDV) preparedness in Ethiopia. KOICA’s support to WHO will contribute to strengthening the capacity of the Ethiopian health system to prepare for Ebola in line with the country’s EVD outbreak preparedness plan.  

The rainy season brings with it the promise of better harvest, greener plains and valleys and abundance of feeds for cattle to produce highly nutritious milk and meat products. It also at the same time poses health threats in the form of possible disease outbreaks like Malaria and Acute Watery Diarrhea that could result from poodles of stagnant water, poor sanitary and hygiene conditions and impending floods. This is particularly true for the South Sudanese refugees and the surrounding host communities in Gambella.

Wardher. 6 January 2015. Since 5 January 2014 no new cases of wild polio virus have been reported from the Somali region of Ethiopia. Dr Pierre M’Pele-Kilebou, WHO Representative to Ethiopia, and Dr Omar Mohammed Farah, Somali Regional Health Bureau Head, visited Wardher town in Doollo Zone, Somali region, on 5 January 2015 to congratulate the Zonal Administration and WHO/UNICEF Operations Base staff for their persistent efforts to ensure that every last child gets vaccinated against this paralyzing disease.

The World Health Organization lauds the initiative of the Government of the United States of America to strengthen their partnership with the Government of Ethiopia towards enhanced implementation of the International Health Regulation (IHR) side by side with achieving the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA).

A meeting between the Government of Ethiopia and the US Government regarding the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) was held on 17 June 2015. 

The ongoing epidemic of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in West Africa poses considerable risk to currently unaffected countries, including Ethiopia. To support currently unaffected countries with strengthening their preparedness for an introduction of EVD, WHO and partners are accelerating Ebola preparedness activities, such as the development of a preparedness checklist outlining the key components and tasks of an Ebola response. 

ADDIS ABABA | 3 June - The Task Force on Immunization (TFI) met in Ethiopia from 30 June to 1 July to review the progress made in improving immunization in the African region and to strategize for the future. The TFI is the principal technical advisory group to the World Health Organization’s Regional Office for Africa (WHO AFRO) on overall regional policies and strategies related to vaccines and immunization.

The two day meeting was attended by several Global EPI partners and the Federal Ministry of Health of Ethiopia.

The HPV Demo Programme Aims to Vaccinate 14,434 Girls

Ethiopia plans to introduce the Human Papillomavirus Vaccine (HPV) in two selected districts, Gomma and Ahiferom in Oromia region  and Tigray region respectively. WHO with the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) organized an orientation workshop on 22-23 June in Addis Ababa to prepare for the introduction of the new vaccine. Participants from FMoH, Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI), UNICEF, Regional Health Bureaus from the pilot regions, Path as well as Jimma and Mekele Universities took part in the workshop.

A new Dracunculiasis (commonly known as Guinea Worm Disease) case has been confirmed in Ethiopia. The third case of 2014 was reported on 2 December from Gog district in Gambella Region, southwest Ethiopia. Aggressive interventions, such as abating of ponds, were immediately taken to prevent other villagers from getting the disease.

Congenital Rubella Syndrome (CRS) surveillance training and experience sharing workshop was held in Harare, Zimbabwe from 17-19 June 2015. The participants came from 11 African countries, including Ethiopia. The workshop was facilitated by WHO's Inter Country Support Team of Eastern and Southern Africa (IST/ESA) and the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC).