Strengthening Public Health Collaboration Between Ethiopia and Norway
The Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI) and the Norwegian Public Health Institute (NIPH) signed a second cooperation agreement today to enhance EPHI’s capacity to strengthen its Climate, Health, and Nutrition knowledge hub, support research on infectious diseases, and improve knowledge translation.
The Building Stronger Public Health Institutions and Systems – Phase 2 (BIS 2) agreement was signed by Dr. Mesay Hailu, Director General of EPHI, and Prof. Guri Rortveit, Director General of NIPH. The ceremony was attended by Dr. Getachew Tollera and Dr. Melkamu Abate, Deputy Director Generals of EPHI, as well as H.E. Stian Christensen, Ambassador of Norway to Ethiopia. Dr. Masresha Tesema, Director of the Nutrition, Environmental Health, and Non-communicable Disease Research Directorate, facilitated both the signing ceremony and the discussions that followed the meeting.
Upon their arrival at the EPHI premises, members of the Norwegian delegation received a warm welcome from the high-level EPHI management team. Prior to the formal signing, Dr. Mesay welcome and briefed the visiting Norwegian delegation in detail on EPHI’s mission, vision, organizational structure, staff, various functions, and major achievements. He specifically mentioned that EPHI is currently celebrating the 100th anniversary of its founding. Similarly, Dr. Getachew Tollera offered a welcome and provided on key achievements accomplished during the BIS 1 collaboration and outlined future prospects for the partnership. Additionally, Dr. Melkamu Abte gave a brief update on public health emergency management. The Norwegian Ambassador, Stian Christensen, stated that the signing of the agreement was a clear signal of the strong and evolving partnership between EPHI and NIPH. The discussion also included a presentation by Dr. Masresha, who focused on the key areas of collaboration achieved under BIS 1. Knut Nyflot then presented on the BIS 2 plan, focusing on the roles of both EPHI and NIPH. Following these presentations, discussions were held, which were then followed by a tour of various EPHI facilities for the visiting Norwegian team.