Coordination and Collaboration are Crucial for PHEM
In order to effectively handle public health emergencies, coordination and cooperation are essential. Hence, to bring together stakeholders involved in the implementation of public health emergency management programs, the Public Health Emergency Management (PHEM) partners’ forum was held on February 1, 2024 in Addis Ababa. For any public health emergency management to be successful nationwide, cooperation and coordination between various stakeholders are essential, according to the forum.
At the forum’s opening, Dr. Melkamu Abte, the deputy director general of the Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), emphasized that public health emergency management can be strengthened for a coordinated response to protect Ethiopia’s health security with community-centered approaches for many years to come with shared responsibility and cooperation.
The Deputy Director General went on to say that more optimization is needed for coordination between water and sanitation authorities, emergency response stakeholders, and other relevant sectors. Dr. Melkamu expressed gratitude to all implementers and partners for their unwavering cooperation over the years and expressed the hope that their support and teamwork would be enhanced and sustained going forward.
The director of the Emergency Preparedness and Capacity Building Directorate at the Ethiopian Public Health Institute, Neima Zenu, stated on behalf of the organization that it is committed to creating an atmosphere that is favorable to working together in any way to improve the execution of public health emergency management programs. Additionally, W/z. Neima stated that since EPHI is currently creating favorable conditions for all partners, it is simple for all sectors to collaborate, coordinate efforts, and pool resources in order to exert the greatest amount of effort.
Discussions were held after presentations on the major outbreak and response updates, health cluster updates, and PHEM’s upcoming priorities were made. Various government ministries, agencies, organizations, partners, donors, and implementers were present at the forum. The goal of the public health emergency management program is to effectively and efficiently manage and respond to public health emergencies.