ECHO Africa 

With a population of more than 1.4 billion people, many of whom live in remote communities lacking basic health care and education, the countries of Africa are a key focus of Project ECHO’s mission to touch 1 billion lives by 2025.

The first ECHO program on the continent was launched in 2015 by the Namibian Ministry of Health to rapidly expand the capacity to treat HIV/AIDs, and it continues to run weekly sessions. Today, the ECHO network in Africa includes more than 160 organizations in 29 countries who are running ECHO programs with participants in all 54 countries. 

These organizations are using ECHO to expand their capacity to treat many diseases and chronic health conditions, strengthen the health care system, improve patient care and deliver essential public health functions. ECHOs are also building needed capacities in education, infrastructure, food security, disaster preparedness and response, and more across the continent.  

In African countries, ECHO serves as a catalyst for transforming health care systems. With a network of passionate ECHO Champions and subject matter experts that innovate and improve systems, ECHO is an essential component of digital learning for ministries, universities and all organizations working for a healthier and more prosperous future. 

Join Us 

To join an existing ECHO on the continent or to start your own ECHO, visit our Become a Partner page or email the ECHO Replication Team.

Project ECHO Programs Address Critical Needs 

ECHO is addressing critical and emerging needs in health care, education, and even engineering by building the capacity of health care workers, educators and professionals, including:

• Autism 
• Cancer  
• COVID-19  
• Global Health Security 
• HIV
• Laboratory Strengthening 
• Maternal and Child Health
• Mental Health 
• One Health 
• Tuburculosis 

ECHO in Action

Uganda Increases Capacity to Treat Drug Resistant HIV Throughout the Country

The Uganda Ministry of Health launched an HIV Drug Resistance ECHO in 2020 to improve the timeframe of switching to more effective medications, share emerging best practices, develop workforce capacity, and provide real-time coaching for difficult cases in the time of COVID-19.  Participation has grown to more than 300 health facilities in all 16 regions of Uganda. In just two years, the HIV Drug Resistance ECHO Community of Practice has helped Uganda achieve a tenfold increase in the number of HIVDR experts -- from eight to about 80. In each of the 16 regional referral hospitals, there are now four or five HIVDR experts. All of the work to operate and grow the ECHO NACP network is being done by Ugandans. 

Learn How

Sudan ECHO Helps Train Thousands in Pandemic Response 

The University of Nebraska Medical Center Global Hub’s Sudan ECHO launched its first program, the Community Medical Response Team, in 2020. This year-long program supported more than 2,000 health care students providing community-based COVID care during the height of the pandemic. These amazing students delivered 150 educational campaigns in six states, ran 65 mobile vaccine clinics that delivered 20,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine, and provided essential triage communication to the Isolation Centers Command.

Read More

Ethiopian Pediatric Society Uses ECHO to Improve Newborn Care Practices  

In 2020, the Ethiopian Pediatric Society, in collaboration with the American Academy of Pediatrics, established the Ethiopian Quality Improvement Initiative ECHO program to increase knowledge around quality improvement methods and test strategies to improve adherence to newborn care practices in the delivery room in eight hospitals in Addis Ababa. 

For their inaugural project, the hospitals chose to improve the timing of cord clamping, a factor with significant implications for babies’ development and long-term health. The participating hospitals demonstrated significant improvement in the percent of births with recommended timing of clamping and nearly all reached their goal of 90% compliance.  

Watch the Video