Prof. Nega Assefa
Professor of Reproductive Health Maternal and Child Health, Haramaya University
PI at HHR
DrPH. Shirine Voller
Director of Operations, LSHTM Clinical Trials Unit Learn More
Operational Manager
Project Manager
Dr. Lola Madrid
Site Lead
Professor of Vaccine Epidemiology, FRCP FMedSci
PI at HHR
Professor Anthony Scott is a British clinician and epidemiologist with an interest in bacterial infectious diseases and vaccination. He trained in clinical medicine at Oxford University and in epidemiology at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and did post-graduate clinical training in Infectious Diseases. Since 1993 he has worked at the KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme in Kilifi, Kenya. Since 2013 he has been Professor of Vaccine Epidemiology at LSHTM and co-founded HHR with Professor Nega Assefa and Anna Seale in 2016 as a programme to host the CHAMPS project and encourage research capacity development in Harar. He has worked on clinical vaccine development and impact studies of vaccines against pneumococcus, Haemophilus influenzae, non-typhoidal salmonella, COVID-19 and other pathogens. Professor Scott also has an interest in the aetiology of serious childhood illnesses (e.g. pneumonia) and childhood death. He works on vaccine policy in the policy committees of the UK (JCVI) and WHO (SAGE).
Dr. Nega Assefa Kassa 
Professor of Reproductive Health, Maternal and Child Health, Haramaya University,CHAMPS Ethiopia site director.
Professor Nega Assefa (PhD), a high-ranking faculty member and researcher in the College of Health and Medical Sciences and professor of Maternal and child.
Professor Nega received his third-degree education in Public Health (Maternal and Child Health) in the College of Health and Medical Sciences of Haramaya University, and he became the firstborn of the Collage’s PhD program in 2012. His dissertation was titled “Pregnancy rate and outcomes in rural eastern Ethiopia Fetal and Neonatal survival”. Dr. Nega has also obtained a certificate of Executive Program in Global Health Leadership from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, United Kingdom.
Professor Nega (PhD) has been serving with perceptible dedication at different capacities in CHMS of Haramaya University since 1993. Besides course offerings, he has been researching and co-researching several maternal health, child and adolescent health, family planning, neonatal and child health, and sexual and reproductive health issues, in partnership with fellows from several overseas universities and research institutions including Johns Hopkins and Harvard Schools of Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Emory University Global Health Institute, Karolinska Institute and Vienna University in Austria. Professor Nega mentored students at PhD and master’s levels. He has been supervising and co-supervising 19 PhD students from University of Durban, South Africa, Ghana, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and Haramaya Universities. Similarly, he has been also supervising 215 master’s students as a lead advisor and a co-supervisor.
Professor Nega, collaborating with his colleagues, has been able to secure 11 grants contributing to advancing health sciences, and building human resources and infrastructures. Together with his colleagues, through the CHAMPS data to action grant from Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and other granting agencies, he created an opportunity for eight PhD scholarships at the LSHTM and through the CHAMPS pregnancy surveillance availed human power and equipment to health facilities in the CHAMPS catchment areas of Harar, Kersa and Haramaya districts. Professor Nega is a co-principal investigator for the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) – Ethiopia project, which started in 2017.
Prior to CHAMPS Professor Nega led Harar and Haramaya Health and Demographic Surveillance (HDSS) systems, one of the largest surveillance system in Africa. He was leading these facilities for more than 12 years at different sites in Kersa, Harar and Haramaya. Since 2018, he has led the inception and running of Hararghe Health Research (HHR) partnerships, a research collaborative effort between Haramaya University and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, which has led to the birth of a state-of-the-art research laboratory that conducts microbiology, molecular diagnostics and histopathology and provides diagnostic services for Hiwot Fana University Hospital.
DrPH. Shirine Voller 
Director of Operations, LSHTM Clinical Trials Unit.
Shirine has oversight of operational activities in the LSHTM Clinical Trials Unit (CTU). This includes ensuring that trials are run efficiently, effectively and are compliant with all relevant governance requirements. She is responsible, together with the academic Directors of the CTU, for the strategic growth and development of the CTU and for clinical trials across LSHTM.
Shirine also remains a long-standing member of the Hararghe Health Research partnership management team and contributes to strategic decision-making to take the partnership forward. She also provides programme management oversight to a portfolio of research grants at KEMRI Wellcome Trust Research Programme in Kilifi, Kenya, where she was based from 2016-2022.
Nana Sarkodie-Mensah 
Project Manager (LSHTM)
LSHTM lead for project management of the HHR portfolio. Oversee management of non-scientific research activities conducted through LSHTM, including finance, procurement, and administration. Contribute to site planning and strategy as a member of the HHR management team.
Dr Joe O. Oundo 
Assistant Professor in Clinical Science/Laboratory Director
Establish and provide leadership to internationally accredited Clinical and Research Microbiology, Molecular biology, Pathology Laboratories. Mentorship of Masters and PhD candidates, and other staff. Build capacity for clinical and research laboratory platform.
Yenenesh Tilahun Asfaw. 
Data to Action Coordinator
Coordinating CHAMPS Ethiopia DtA activities. CHAMPS Ethiopia envisions child health improvement through the knowledge generated by the program. Major activities are knowledge translation, data sharing, capacity building, psycho-social support and advocacy on child health. Locally the families, the community in the catchment area and health facilities are the stakeholders. Nationally health authorities, medias and other organizations working on child health has been involved and the international audiences is reached through publications and case studies.
CHAMPS contributes to child health using the knowledge built through this section.
Direct intervention on the matter using the available data and further exploration through additional research are the methods.
Beth Morrison
Project Administrator
Support the management and operations team and responsible for travel, expenses and help support the procurement and shipping of goods.
Dr. Addisu Alemu 
Lead Pathologist
He is pathologist in CHAMPS Ethiopia (Hararghe Health Research partnership). He is a member of Decode panel as specialist in Pathology and his main focus of his work is report the histopathology slides of MITS core tissues samples and provide it for panel of experts in the correspondent forms. For quality assurance of the report, He works closely with CDC central pathology lab through digital pathology and telepathology sessions. Furthermore, give training for newly employed MITS practitioners and pathologist and supervise Histo-technicians in their daily activities and lead regular meetings at Pathology laboratory.
Boniface Kamau Jibendi
Chief Technology Officer
Boniface Kamau Jibendi is the Chief Technology Officer from LSHTM/HHR. Boniface directs, train and manage all HHR IT teams and datacenter resources to run a world class and compliant datacenter and software environment in support of HHR research mission and vision. He also advices scientist and researcher on their IT requirements to ensure their data is collected, transmitted, stored and retrieved in a secure and a compliant manner.
Dr. Haleluya Leulseged 
Facility Research Coordinator and Haramaya Site Lead
Dr. Haleluya is a dedicated medical doctor and research coordinator at the Hararghe Health Research Partnership (HHR). His responsibilities include overseeing research activities, collecting and analyzing data, conducting autopsy procedures, managing research budgets, informing participants about study objectives, administering questionnaires, adhering to ethical standards and regulatory protocols, maintaining detailed records, liaising with laboratories, participating in subject recruitment efforts, and ensuring the necessary supplies and equipment are available.
Mohammed Jemal 
Research Coordinator for Pregnancy Surveillance.
Lead the overall activities of PS, including staff allocation, plan and design of activities
Tadesse Dufera Tadesse 
Tadesse Dufera Tadesse
Generally Responsible for coordination of the research activities at hospital level. Manage a team of research staff (Health officers, nurses, counsellors and fieldworkers) and will oversee recruitment of study participants at hospital level
Getahun Wakwaya 
SBS team as a research coordinator.
Getahun Wakwaya is a Sociologist leading SBS team as a research coordinator. He coordinates activities of community engagement and formative research.
Gezahegn Mengesha Negassa
MSc in Biostatistics Statistician
Coordinate the management of data and statistical analysis at the hospitals and DSS in Kersa and Harar, which serve as the location for the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance program. Support information technology, data administration, and data analysis for the CHAMPS, hospital, and DSS investigations. collaborate with statisticians and epidemiologists from throughout the world. Maintain data quality throughout all surveillance operations (such as data checks and audits). communicate and coordinate with local, national, and international partners as well as the CHAMPS team in Ethiopia.
Gurmu Feyissa 
Research Coordinator
Coordinate community MITS(minimally invasive tissue sampling), social and behavioral science and pregnancy surveillance activities in one of the research sites, namely Kersa.
Supervise seven employees under the community MITS team.
Facilitate logistic and finance requests.
Responsible for data quality.
Work closely with other research sites and the Principal Investigator.
