The site where the Ethiopian Institute of Public Health is now located began to provide various public and animal health services in 1922 (1914 according to the Ethiopian calendar) from the time Dr. Thomas Lambie established an American volunteer medical service hospital. Dr. Thomas Lambe started the service with four doctors and six nurses who came with him. At that time, Dr. Thomas Lambe started educating women by opening a school called the American Mission, where only the women of our country could study. This service continued until the Italian invasion in 1928, according to the Ethiopian calendar.

When the Italian government invaded our country, the foreigners who were working in Ethiopia at the time were forced to leave the country by giving them compensation, so Dr. Thomas and his colleagues went to their home country, America. The services that were provided at the site were also stopped. Instead, the site was used by the Italian administration for Addis Ababa sanitary control services.

The Italian government tried to improve the services provided at Lambe Hospital by adding the Ethiopians who were working at the hospital at the time and its own experts. He then moved it to the area where the highway authority’s office is now located.

When Italy was defeated and left our country, institutions that had been providing various services by foreign experts before the Italian invasion were transferred to the property of the palace. As a result, the former Lambe Hospital was renamed Teferi Mekonon Hospital and was used as a treatment facility for the royal family.

In 1943, when the Ministry of Health of Ethiopia was established by decree, the medical services that were provided in the field were left and managed under the Ministry of Health. In 1944, the Ministry of Health entered into an agreement with the French government to conduct research and study on various diseases and to provide health laboratory testing services under the name “Institute Pasteur d’Ethiopi”. He was named and started his work by establishing various departments. This time the work was led by experts from both governments. The departments established to carry out research are:

1. Department of Bacteriology, Parasitology and Serology,
2. Department of Chemical Analysis,
3. Department of Antipatriotic Vaccine Preparation,
4. Director of Typhoid Vaccine Preparation,
5. TB Vaccine Development Department,
6. Rabies Vaccine Preparation Department, and
7. Microvial Vaccine Development Department.

Among the vaccines that were produced in different quantities at that time:

1. Antiviral vaccine
2. Anti-typhoid,
3. Rabies vaccine,
4. TB vaccine,
5. Typhoid vaccine,
6. Yellow fever vaccine
7. Flu vaccine included.

A certain amount was produced every year, and the service was given to the community for free.

This research and study, which started with the agreement of the French and Ethiopian governments, as well as the production and distribution of various vaccines, lasted until 1957.

The site, now home to the Ethiopian Public Health Institute, was known as the Dr. Thomas Lambe Hospital from 1915 to 1928 and was renamed the Pasteur Institute from 1944 to 1957. It is known by many people for its contributions to public health in Ethiopia.

After 1957, when the agreement between the government of Ethiopia and the government of France ended, the entire management and staff were to be managed by Ethiopians, and the budget was fully covered by the government of Ethiopia. The service that was provided earlier continued under the same name until 1977. However, except for the rabies vaccine, other vaccination services did not continue after the arrival of the Derg government.

After 1957, the research and study on the health problems of society, especially those that are contagious and occur suddenly, intensified. For example, in 1973, the institute conducted research that identified the cause of ergotism in the former Wolo province.

Since 1977, as the institute’s work has expanded, it was re-established as the Ethiopian National Health Research Institute. Dr. Fisseha Haile Meskel, who served as director from 1970 to 1985, contributed significantly to the institute’s overall development and the improvement and development of its relations with international institutions. The institute also opened a laboratory technology school during this time and produced many professionals in the field

It was initially established in 1962 as the Children’s Nutrition Department through cooperation between the Ethiopian government and the Swedish government. This department was later restructured in 1968 as the Ethiopian Institute of Nutrition. The institute was initially housed in the former Lelet Tananyework Hospital, now the premises of the Armed Forces Hospital. From 1968 to 1973, the institute undertook various activities to address the drought in Ethiopia. It also spearheaded the introduction of supplements known as Dobena Growth. Since 1973, the institute has operated from its own building, serving as the main laboratory and research institute, focusing primarily on food science and nutrition research. Dr. Zewdie Wolde Gabriel, who served as director for an extended period, played a key role in the institute’s development.

The Department of Traditional Medicine was established in 1979 by the Ministry of Health. To further strengthen its functions, the department was upgraded to the Department of Traditional Medicine Research. Since its establishment, the department has conducted research on medicinal herbs, compiling the national and scientific names of over 600 plants in Ethiopia and publishing them in a modern format. It has also conducted numerous studies and research on various traditional medicines.

With the establishment of the Ethiopian Health and Nutrition Research Institute and the Ethiopian Food Research Organization, it was recognized that consolidating similar and related activities in the health sector would enhance resource utilization and knowledge transfer.

The organizations were:

1. Ethiopian National Health Research Institute
2. Ethiopian Food Research Organization
3. Traditional Medicine Research Department

The re-established Ethiopian Institute of Health and Nutrition’s mission was to conduct problem-solving research on priority public health issues and provide reliable health information to policy decision-makers. It was also tasked with providing high-quality referral laboratory testing services and manufacturing rabies vaccine products. In the year 2000, the institute revamped its work processes and added new responsibilities, organizing them into three main work processes.

These new work processes were implemented until 2006. However, to address legal gaps and enhance international relations, the institute was re-established in 2006 as the “Ethiopian Public Health Institute.” The new establishment regulation outlined three main duties and responsibilities:

Conducting research on health and nutritional problems based on the national public health research agenda, generating, absorbing, and disseminating scientific and technological knowledge to improve public health.

Collaborating with relevant parties to conduct surveys, identify health risks in advance, and make adequate preparations to prevent potential risks. When health risks occur, the institute is responsible for issuing alerts, warnings, and current information, providing a prompt and competent response, and assisting the affected society in recovering quickly from the impact.

Strengthening the institute’s laboratories with trained human resources and advanced technology to conduct problem-solving research, effectively respond to public health risks, perform referral diagnostic and analytical tests, build the capacity of health and food science laboratories at the national level, and ensure the provision of quality services.