By HER staff reporter
Ethiopia has launched a five-year, US$90 million partnership with the Beginnings Fund to expand quality maternal and newborn healthcare and accelerate efforts to prevent avoidable deaths and stillbirths by 2031.
The Federal Ministry of Health and the Beginnings Fund announced the initiative in Addis Ababa, saying it will support Ethiopia’s national plans to prevent approximately 86,000 maternal and newborn deaths and stillbirths by 2031. The programme will operate across eight regions, 46 districts, and 210 health facilities.
The investment will strengthen the maternal and newborn health workforce, expand access to proven and cost-effective interventions, and improve the availability of essential medicines and equipment. It will also finance upgrades to health infrastructure, data systems, and emergency referral services.
Of the US$90 million, US$10 million was previously committed through Ethiopia’s Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (RMNCH) Compact, a government-led mechanism that coordinates domestic and donor financing for essential maternal and newborn health commodities.
The Beginnings Fund investment is designed to complement existing and planned financing, including up to US$506 million in Federal Government commitments and more than US$220 million from other donors and partners.
Health Minister Dr. Mekdes Daba Feyssa said the partnership would help Ethiopia improve the quality of maternal and newborn care and expand access to services for women and babies.
She said the initiative would strengthen the health workforce, expand access to proven interventions, and build stronger systems for quality care. According to the Minister, it represents an investment in more resilient maternal and newborn health services, with the capacity, infrastructure, and systems needed to sustain progress for future generations.
The Ministry of Health will lead implementation in collaboration with Regional Health Bureaus and national institutions, building on Ethiopia’s existing health-sector and maternal and newborn health strategies.
Alice Kang’ethe, Chief Executive Officer of the Beginnings Fund, said every woman should be able to give birth safely and every newborn should have the best possible start in life.
She said the partnership would focus resources where they can make the greatest impact, working with the Federal Government and partners to ensure more women and newborns receive quality care when they need it.
Dr. Shamma Khalifa Al Mazrouei, Director General of the Mohamed bin Zayed Foundation for Humanity and an anchor donor to the Beginnings Fund, said the announcement builds on the Foundation’s long-standing partnership with Ethiopia. She said the Fund would continue investing in skilled health workers and solutions to expand access to lifesaving care.
Faustina Fynn-Nyame, Executive Director for Africa at the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), described the partnership as a significant step toward ending preventable maternal and newborn deaths across Africa. She said lasting progress would also require addressing barriers such as limited access to quality care, health-system gaps, poverty, malnutrition, and gender inequities.
The Ethiopia partnership follows the Beginnings Fund’s recently announced agreement with the Government of Kenya as the philanthropic initiative expands its work with African governments.
The Fund says its broader goal is to prevent more than 300,000 avoidable deaths and improve care for 34 million women and newborns by 2030, with Ethiopia among its priority countries.
By 2031, the Ethiopian partnership is expected to contribute to a 15 percent reduction in maternal mortality, a 15.7 percent reduction in stillbirths, and a 26 percent reduction in neonatal mortality.
