Capacity Building Trainings
1.1 Training on social and behavior change (SBC)
Description: The Ethiopian Health Education and Promotion Professionals Association
(EHEPA) has provided three rounds of comprehensive training on social and behavior
change (SBC) to enhance the participants’ knowledge and skills in designing,
implementing, and evaluating SBC interventions to address public health and non-health
problems in their respective organization.. The training was provided from October to
December 2023 in Sidama and Jimma, Ethiopia, targeting managers and program
officers from various government and non-governmental organizations working in
Sidam and South west regiones.
1.2 Training on Health education and Health Promotion
Description: The Ethiopian Health Education and Promotion Professionals Association
(EHEPA) has provided two rounds of training on Health education and Health promotion
for healthcare providers at EKA General Hospital from May to June 2024. This training
initiative aims to enhance the capacity of healthcare professionals by equipping them
with the knowledge and skills in Health Education and Promotion, ultimately leading to
improved health outcomes. The training helped health care providers to understand the
principles and concepts of social and behavior change (SBC), develop effective health
communication skills, address the behavioral factors that influence health outcomes to
effectively promote behavior change among their patients and implement SBC
strategies in their practice.
2. Knowledge management and Evidence generation and synthesis
2.1 Manuscript writing and publication
Description: The Ethiopian Health Education and Promotion Professionals Association (EHEPA)
has been working on generating and synthesizing evidence in the field of SBC. In collaboration
with UNICEF Ethiopia, member academicians and SBC practitioners, EHEPA has been preparing
manuscripts on various thematic areas for publication in peer-reviewed journals. This initiative
aims to contribute to evidence-based decision making and share Knowledge and best practices
in the field of public health and social and behavior change (SBC)..
Link of publications
1. Assessment of willingness and determinants to receive the COVID-19 vaccine among the
general population of the Somali region, Eastern Ethiopia: a 2021 cross-sectional study
Link: https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/13/12/e080733
2. BabyWASH and diarrhea prevention practices following multimedia educational
intervention in hard-to-reach areas of the Afar and Somali regions of Ethiopia: a mixed-
method endline evaluation
Link: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-023-16887-y
3. Social and behavior change communication competency among front-line healthcare
system actors in Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study
Link: https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-024-18084-
x
4. Reach and impact of a nationwide media campaign in Ethiopia for promoting safe
breastfeeding practices in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic
Link: https://doi.org/10.1186/s44263-024-00065-2
5. Awareness and healthcare seeking behavior of neonatal danger signs, and predictor
variables among mothers/caregivers in four developing regional state of Ethiopia
Link: https://bmcpediatr.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12887-024-04656-8
6. Assessment of COVID-19 vaccine uptake and associated factors among healthcare
workers in selected health facilities of the Somali Region, Eastern Ethiopia: a cross-
sectional study conducted in 2021
Link: https://bmjpublichealth.bmj.com/content/2/1/e000642
2.2 Behavioral insight training Manual contextualization
Description: the EHEPA team, in collaboration with the BIRDLAB team, adopted and
contextualized the Behavioral Insight Training Manual The manual is designed to provide SBC
practitioners and professionals engaged in Social and behavior change ( SBC) activities with a
comprehensive understanding of behavioral insights and how they can be applied to improve
health outcomes.
3. Project activities using a Human Centered Design and Behavioral Insights approaches
3.1 Using Journey mapping framework to ideate and understand the journey of caregivers towards routine childhood immunization
Description: As part of the Behavioral and social drivers of immunization (BESD) study, the
project team conducted the Journey to immunization activity to explore the enablers and
barriers of routine childhood immunization practice among caregivers and Health Care
Workers in Addis Ababa, Oromia, Afar, Somali, Gambela regions of Ethiopia.
3.2 Collaboration and Partnership
Description: In collaboration with the BUSARA Center for Behavioral Economics, the EHEPA
team facilitated a co-creation workshop, co-design session and testing in Sidama, Somali,
Gambella, Oromia and South West regions for the Project titled “Developing behavioral
solutions to improve Multiple Micronutrient Supplementation (MMS) adherence, ANC visits
and maternal diet in Ethiopia”