Our work in Ethiopia began back in 2003 when we introduced services to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV (called PMTCT). We led the development of the first national PMTCT guidelines and worked with local partners to roll out innovative approaches like support groups and home-based services for mothers with HIV.

We continue to work closely with the Ministry of Health and our work still has a tight focus on maternal health—from improving emergency obstetric care to training community volunteers to prevent obstetric fistula.

And over the years we’ve seen results.

By prioritizing high-quality maternal and child health services, Ethiopia has dramatically reduced its child mortality rate and increased women’s access to and use of modern family planning methods. There are also indications that the rate of new HIV infections is declining.

Of course there’s still work to do to ensure every woman and family has access to the high-quality health services they need and the health workers that provide them.


Key Results

HIV red ribbon icon Integrated PMTCT and MNCH services in 1/3 of Ethiopia’s health facilities.
pregnant woman icon Established 230 mothers’ support groups for HIV-positive women.
female icon Helped over 1,000 women receive treatment and care for obstetric fistula.

Selected Achievements

Scaled up and built demand for PMTCT services in Ethiopia, including supporting PMTCT-MNCH service integration in 1,025 health centers—about 1.4 million pregnant women have received HIV testing, and thousands of HIV-positive women have received treatment.
Collaborated with Ethiopia's Ministry of Health to develop guidelines such as the training package for basic emergency obstetric care, a roadmap for safe motherhood, and plans to scale up Option B+ and eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
Established 230 mothers’ support groups for HIV-positive women at facilities in Ethiopia offering PMTCT services—the groups have increased uptake of antiretroviral prophylaxis (98% among pregnant mothers and 96% among infants).
Strengthened basic emergency obstetric care in 519 health centers in Ethiopia.
Provided fistula-related training for over 4,000 health workers and over 2,300 community volunteers in Ethiopia.
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