Despite limited access to reproductive health and family planning services, misconceptions, harmful traditional practices, and low literacy levels in rural areas, Ethiopians have dramatically increased their use of modern family planning methods over the past decade. Building on this momentum, USAID works to improve the health of mothers, infants, children, adolescents and youth by decreasing unintended and teenage pregnancies, expanding access to better quality healthcare, and ultimately helping families live healthier and more prosperous lives.
In addition to improving access to family planning services, we work to enhance service quality by advancing provider skills, commodity security, financing for health, and better use of data. We also strengthen the capacity of family health programs through community mobilization efforts to promote healthy behaviors, such as seeking preventive care at health facilities, proper nutrition and household sanitation and hygiene practices, and helping families better prepare for emergencies and build resilience. These are all critical efforts as Ethiopia grapples with the impact of COVID-19 on both service seeking behavior and health system capacity to sustain services.
USAID has worked closely with the Ministry of Health and regional health bureaus to train 40,000 health extension workers and improve the capacity and reach of local health systems to provide families with the services, information and knowledge needed to determine things like the size and spacing of their families or help mothers have safer pregnancies to support safer childbirth.
We also support the national pharmaceutical and medical supply agency to better manage and track health commodities using digital information systems and make sure hospitals, health centers and pharmacies have adequate medicines and supplies to help families stay healthy.
KEY ACTIVITIES
- USAID’s Transform Primary Health Care and Transform Health in Developing Regions projects strengthen capacity for health administrators and managers to plan, budget and manage public health programming, and strengthen the capacity of local healthcare providers and medical professionals to improve the quality of basic health services in underserved areas of the country.
KEY RESOURCES
