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The Mela Project

  • Project Site Location

    Mek’ele, Ethiopia

  • Project Site Partners

    Mekelle University

  • UIC CGH Faculty Contact

    Gelila Goba

Project/Activity Summary Heading link

Mekelle University is a public higher education institution located in Mekelle, Tigray, Ethiopia. Mekelle is one of the largest public universities in Ethiopia and student intake capacity has reached over 10% of the city’s population.

The Mela Project, a medical residency peering program created by Dr. Goba in collaboration with Mekelle University,, seeks to establish an “OB/GYN Center of Excellence” at Mekelle University, with expansion into South Sudan, Uganda, and Somaliland. The goal of the program is to increase the number of OB/GYNs in Ethiopia through resident training at Mekelle University.

The Mela Project was conceived in 2015 to support the Federal Ministry of Health’s efforts in starting an OB/Gyn residency program at Mekelle University that could support the education and training of OB/Gyn residents. The project has been supported by the Chicago-based IDP Foundation as well as a UIC Chancellor Seed Grant.