Addis Ababa, Ethiopia — In a significant move to address the growing challenge of an aging population, the World Health Organization (WHO) has collaborated with the Ethiopian Ministry of Health to launch a Training of Trainers (ToT) program on Integrated Care for Older People (ICOPE).
The program, funded by the Government of Japan through the TICAD9 Japanese Supplementary Budget (JFY2025), is part of the larger “Restoring and Digitizing Health Services in Ethiopia “project.
The ToT program, held from June 23 to 26, 2026, in Adama, Oromia Region, brought together a diverse group of multidisciplinary health workers, including doctors, nurses, health officers, physiotherapists, nutritionists, psychologists, social workers, and health extension workers. These professionals from six health facilities in Addis Ababa, as well as Ministry of Health officials, civil society organizations, and WHO experts, participated in the four-day training. During the training’s opening ceremony, Dr.
Haimanot Workneh, Maternal and Child Health Programme Officer, delivered remarks on behalf of Prof. Francis Kasolo, WHO Representative to Ethiopia, expressing gratitude for Japan’s support in advancing healthy aging in Ethiopia.
The ICOPE framework aims to shift the focus of health care from disease curing to preventing intrinsic capacity loss and managing functional ability in older individuals, thus maintaining their dignity and quality of life. Dr. Yuka Sumi, responsible for ICOPE in WHO Headquarters, emphasized the importance of strengthening primary health care to meet the needs of older people, aligning with Ethiopia’s National Healthy Ageing and Older Person Care Strategy (2026–2030).
The program is designed to build competencies across various key areas, including clinical care, person — centered assessment and care, service delivery and referral coordination, and training and facilitation skills. It also seeks to establish a sustainable national cadre of trainers who will support the phased sub-national and national scale-up of ICOPE implementation. Ethiopia’s aging population is growing alongside an increasing life expectancy, presenting new opportunities but also increasing pressures on health systems.
The ICOPE approach is intended to reorient health and social care services to better respond to the complex and challenging care needs of the elderly.
The initiative exemplifies the strong collaboration between the WHO, the Ethiopian Ministry of Health, and other partners, contributing to the strengthening of the capacity to deliver quality care for older people.
As the program scales up, it is expected to contribute to a more robust and responsive health system that can effectively address the needs of the elderly in Ethiopia.
*Additional reporting by ImNews | Sources consulted: 5*
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This original article was produced by the ImNews editorial team
Source: reliefweb
Source: World Health Organization
