LINDA Familia Project Conducts Technical Meeting in Ethiopia
On February 26, 2026, the LINDA Familia Ethiopia Project held a technical expert meeting at the Ethiopian Public Health Institute’s (EPHI) National Training Center. Key stakeholders; including experts from the Ministry of Health (MOH) Digital Health Department, the Addis Ababa Regional Health Bureau, the EPHI’s National Data Management Center (NDMC), HISP Ethiopia, Pulse Tech EMR developer company, and various partner organizations took part on the meeting.
Dr. Aderajew Mekonnen, Director of the EPHI’s Health System Directorate and Principal Investigator, opened the meeting by emphasizing the need for technical coordination and collaboration in system integration. He highlighted the importance of leveraging real-time data for informed decision-making, ensuring the project’s successful implementation, sustainability, and improved maternal and child health outcomes. Dr. Aderajew presented key agenda items, including Integration of EMR with DHIS2, Customization of DHIS2, data deployment locations, and all the related applications implementation including the overview of LINDA Familia project.
Participants engaged in discussions to enhance system interoperability, improve data quality, and address real-time reporting challenges. The session emphasized the critical role of collaboration among federal and regional health authorities to effectively support the LINDA Familia Project.
Representatives from the Addis Ababa Health Bureau and Pulse Tech noted that most health facilities already use EMR, with integration into DHIS2 beginning in two health centers. They suggested that SMS messaging should originate from EMR to allow timely notifications for mothers and emphasized the need for early involvement of the bureau for effective implementation.
The Ministry of Health highlighted the importance of centralizing the EMR system, mentioning that initial testing was completed and piloting would start in March in the Jijiga town Sumali region, expanding to six additional hubs
The ENABLE team shared insights, noting that their project complements LINDA Familia in advancing digital health systems. The LINDA Familia team explained that the system would automatically send SMS and AVM messages based on available data and assured that data anonymization would occur before EMR integration with DHIS2. They also reported on the ongoing finalization of the data dictionary, to be validated with HISP Ethiopia and NDMC for seamless customization.
The meeting acknowledged the stakeholders’ strong capacity in app development and system customization. A steering committee was formed to oversee integration, with assigned responsibilities for:
. Metadata standardization by EPHI, Ministry of Health, Addis Ababa Health Bureau, and Pulse Tech
. DHIS2 customization led by HISP Ethiopia and the Ministry of Health
. API integration between EMR and DHIS2 by Pulse Tech and Addis Ababa Health Bureau
. SMS messaging integration within EMR by Pulse Tech
. Deployment site preparation and server assessment by NDMC, and
. Mobile application development by HISP Ethiopia
Each stakeholder designated a responsible person for their tasks to ensure accountability and effective collaboration. The team agreed to maintain ongoing communication to monitor progress and advance the digitalization of the health system.
LINDA-FAMILIA is a European Union-funded initiative aimed at strengthening health systems through an innovative, interoperable digital health platform, focusing on maternal, newborn, and child health sectors in Ethiopia, Rwanda, Uganda, and Tanzania. It strives to improve health outcomes, enhance disease surveillance, support clinical decision-making, and improve quality of care through real-time data capture and better service coordination. This initiative combines international and local expertise, ensuring a sustainable impact on health systems.