Health Sector Organization

Important steps have been taken in the decentralization of the health care system. Decision making processes in the development and implementation of the health system are shared between the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH), the Regional Health Bureaus (RHBs) and the Woreda Health Offices.  As a result of recent policy measures taken by the Government, the FMoH and the RHBs are made to function more on policy matters and technical support, while the woreda health offices have been made to play the pivotal roles of managing and coordinating the operation of the primary health care services.

Health Care Coverage and Utilization

The overall potential health service coverage in 2000 EFY is estimated at 89.6%, 25.6% increase from 1996. Nonetheless, this varies substantially among the regions depending on their topographic and demographic characteristics. Geographical distance from a health facility and socio economic factors are the major obstacle for the bulk of the Ethiopian population. However, the trend over time shows that there is a steady increase both in health care coverage and utilization.

Health Care Financing

Health services in Ethiopia are financed by four main sources. These are government (both federal and regional); bilateral and multilateral donors (both grants and loans); non-governmental organizations; and private contributions.  The National Health Accounts exercise for financial year 2000/01 revealed that households contribute 36%, government 33%, and bilateral and multilateral donors 16%.