Ethiopia digitalises public healthcare services

by ADANE BIKILA

ADDIS ABABA – THE digitalisation of Ethiopia’s public health emergency management (PHEM) system is a landmark step towards strengthening national health security.

The recent launch marked significant progress towards establishing the PHEM Centre of Excellence (PHEM-COE).

Among the partners in the exercise is the government, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and World Health Organisation (WHO).

Officials, speaking at an event in the capital Addis Ababa, said with a robust digital backbone now in place, Ethiopia was advancing toward its vision of designating the PHEM-COE as a WHO Collaborating Centre. Future innovations, including AI-enabled analytics, predictive epidemic intelligence, and climate-sensitive surveillance systems, are expected to further reinforce Ethiopia’s leadership in emergency preparedness across the East African region.

Dr Mekdes Daba, Minister of Health, said the investment in the Centre of Excellence strengthened infrastructure, institutionalised standard operating procedures and built a skilled multidisciplinary workforce.

She said the efforts enable earlier detection and faster response, helping to protect our communities.

“I encourage stronger collaboration with non-health sectors, including the Ethiopian Artificial Intelligence Institute, the Ministry of Innovation and Technology, universities and other relevant institutions,” Daba said.

Dr Melaku Abte, Deputy Director General in the PHEM, explained emergency management processes would no longer be largely paper-based, manual, fragmented and reactive.

“Today, modernisation of our Public Health Emergency Operations Centre, combined with interoperable digital platforms, has strengthened early warning surveillance, enhanced laboratory linkages, and enabled real-time data visualisation for decision-makers,” Abte said.

Ethiopia’s health system has in recent years faced significant challenges due to COVID-19, natural disasters and conflicts, disrupting service delivery.

– CAJ News