Ethiopia Embarks on Telemedicine Project
By Mercy Wambui, ECA, 20 August 2004

A two-week telemedicine training programme for over 20 Ethiopian medical doctors drawn from 10 hospitals in Addis Ababa and regional towns started on Monday 16th August 2004 at the United Nations Conference Center (UNCC). The training is being undertaken as part of a telemedicine pilot project in Ethiopia in which ECA is collaborating with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), UNESCO, Ethiopia`s Ministry of Health, Ethiopian Telecom Corporation (ETC), and the Addis Ababa University- Faculty of Medicine.

The Development Information Services Division (DISD) is making available expertise and the training facilities of its Information Technology Center for Africa (ITCA) for this training and other follow-up activities. Trainees have already undergone basic Internet training in preparation for the actual telemedicine training.

Speaking at the opening, Ms. Aida Opoku-Mensah, Officer-in-Charge DISD, welcomed participants and thanked all the institutions that have collaborated with ECA in organizing this workshop. She highlighted the role of ICTs in development in general and the health sector in particular, by sharing tele-health experiences from Mali, Mozambique and Uganda.

She emphasized that this initiative is an actualization of ECA`s ICT for Development work programme, implemented through the African Information Society Initiative (AISI) and as support to Ethiopia. She said that ECA would continue its support and collaboration in the implementation of the project, hopefully expanding it to other medical institutions outside of Addis.

Mr. Tilahun Kebede from ITU outlined ITU`s role in the project. He provided a background on ITU`s global agenda to promote telemedicine applications in developing countries. Outlining the global and regional Telecommunication Development Conferences as milestones in moving the telemedicine agenda forward, he pointed out that the recommendations from the first and second World Telemedicine Symposium for Developing Countries held in 1997 and 1999 respectively, have been very useful in promoting the growth of telemedicine in developing countries. "Despite some difficulties encountered in the process, ITU is now more confident and happy that the pilot project is going to be implemented, and will continue its support." Remarked Mr. Tilahun.

Mr. Asfaw Hailemariam, The ICT Department Head of the Ethiopian Telecommunication Corporation (ETC), on behalf of ETC and the National Telemedicine Coordination Committee (NTCC), described ETC`s involvement in the project and concluded that ETC is now happy that the project is ready to take off.

"Given that the Government has demonstrated readiness in launching very big ICT projects, such SchoolNet and WoredaNet, the necessary broadband infrastructure is already in place to roll out projects such as telemedicine," said Mr. Asfew. He also pointed out that the vision of the National Telemedicine Coordination Committee is to scale up the project to fully-fledged connectivity to make the better use of the technology in the health sector, and hand over the project to the rightful owners and implementers once the project has been successfully launched.

For further information, please contact Aida Opoku-Mensah (aopoku-mensah@uneca.org).

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