February 2025 HISP Highlights

The month of February has seen a flurry of activity across the entire HISP network, particularly for countries supporting the DHIS2 Climate & Health project. Read more about this month’s most noteworthy events, collaborations, trainings, and implementation highlights below!

Partnership

HISP UiO and PAHO Sign Agreement
The HISP Centre at the University of Oslo (HISP UiO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) have signed a five-year memorandum of understanding to collaborate on strengthening digital health information systems in the Americas. The agreement establishes a framework for capacity building, technical support, and research to promote the sustainable and effective use of DHIS2 in the region. This partnership aims to support PAHO and its member states to leverage DHIS2 for data-driven decision-making, improved public health surveillance, and integrated health information systems. More

Implementation

IMCI Tracker Digitization
HISP Rwanda has collaborated with the Ministry of Health of Djibouti, with support from UNICEF, to digitize an Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI) Tracker in DHIS2. This individual data-management system integrated into the DHIS2 platform will support IMCI and optimize data quality through an electronic register. More

Field Work in Togo
In February, a team from HISP WCA and Togo’s Ministry of Health conducted inspection visits to the maritime and plateau regions of Togo, working to identify the data needs and analyzing how data is being used to improve inspection performance. This effort is part of a post-training foll0w-up to identify challenges associated with using DHIS2 and to propose tailored solutions. More

District of Excellence Evaluation
The HISP Tanzania District of Excellence (DoE) evaluation team has completed its project evaluation to assess the progress and achievements toward the projects’s objectives. The DoE initiative, which launched in 2022, aims to address gaps in data utilization at the sub-national level. HISP Tanzania staff are excited to share recommendations for scaling successful approaches to other districts in the country and beyond. More

Events

HISP UiO Represented at DHIS2 Symposium
HISP UiO colleagues Mike Frost and Scott Russpatrick were in Arlington, Virginia, USA for the annual DHIS2 Symposium hosted by BAO Systems. They shared presentations about integrating climate and health data in DHIS2, and about DHIS2 opportunities and partnerships. More

Climate & Health Presentation at UiO
Prof. Kristin Braa, director of the HISP Centre at UiO, shared a presentation called “Using climate data in DHIS2 for health sector preparedness & response,” as part of a faculty lecture series at the university’s Department of Informatics. Her presentation featured the centre’s ongoing multi-year Climate and Health action-research project, funded by Wellcome Trust, that explores how low- and middle-income countries can integrate climate data into their existing DHIS2 health information systems to close the climate-health data gap, provide evidence for national climate change adaptation and public health policies, and support effective health interventions to respond to climate-related health risks. More

Climate & Health in Uganda
HISP Uganda recently attended the first meeting of the Climate & Health Technical Working Group at the Regenerate Africa Headquarters in Gaba, Uganda. The group’s meetings bring together key stakeholders—including the Makerere School of Public Health, the Clinton Health Access Initiative, the Ministry of Finance, Save the Children, Amref, Regenerate Africa, and more—to review the Health National Adaptation Plan and to strategize resource mobilization for its implementation to enhance climate resilience in the health sector. More
HISP Uganda and the Uganda Ministry of Health also shared a presentation on “Understanding the Importance of Climate Change in Disease Prevalence” during a One Health and Diagnosing Zoonoses Workshop in Uganda, attended by representatives from the University of Glasgow, Makerere University, and the University of Stockholm. More

Climate & Health in Togo
Representatives from HISP WCA presented the DHIS2 Climate Health Analytics Platform (CHAP) to the Directorate of the National Health Information System and IT, within Togo’s Ministry of Health, during an event in early February. CHAP has the potential to strengthen the resilience of Togo’s health systems in the face of climate-related challenges. More

DHIS2 Implementation in EMRO Countries
HISP Middle East and North Africa (MENA) participated in a World Health Organization webinar, sharing an interactive presentation about experiences and lessons learned from stakeholders on DHIS2 implementations in the Arab region for the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean (EMRO). The presentation highlighted the relationship between ministries of health, HISP UiO, and HISP groups; shared updates on capacity-building efforts; and discussed the importance of governance and institutionalization of local work teams. More

Data Management Planning Workshop
HISP Tanzania had the opportunity to participate in a workshop on assessing data and plans for councils in 2025 and 2026. Dodoma Region acting Chief Medical Officer Dr. Nelson Bukuru opened the meeting, which aimed to ensure each council has access to accurate data and that council plans align with regional guidelines and priorities to improve health services. More 

Integrating Proxy Indicators
In February, HISP Tanzania held a meeting with referral and tertiary hospitals in the Morogoro Region to help integrate proxy indicators from these facilities into the national DHIS2-based health information system. The meeting included system vendors from these facilities, to assist with automating the data submission. The effort aims to reduce the burden on health workers and improve the quality of submitted data. More

Climate and Health Data Integration
HISP Rwanda collaborated with the Ministry of Health for an initiative to integrate climate data into health information systems to enhance disease surveillance and response, conducting a five-day workshop with key stakeholders and academic institutions to review and validate the use case and plan for the pilot phase. For this project, HISP Rwanda and HISP UiO aim to leverage climate and weather data to predict, prevent, and manage climate-sensitive health challenges with a primary focus on malaria control. More

Digital Tools for Education Workshop
Also in February, HISP WCA held a workshop for officers from Togo’s Ministry of Higher Education, focused on improving digital tools for education. This workshop aimed to strengthen the efficiency of digital educational framework tools integrated in DHIS2, integrating feedback to ensure their use is suitable for education stakeholders. More

Training

DHIS2 System Management Academy in Togo
HISP WCA hosted a five-day Academy on System Administration in Lomé, Togo, welcoming participants from more than 10 countries across the African continent. During this Academy, experts and industry stakeholders worked together to enhance skills, master advanced management of DHIS2 systems and optimize data use. More

Uganda AIDS Commission Staff Training
HISP Uganda recently completed training for staff of the Uganda AIDS Commission (UAC) on DHIS2 customization, data management and reporting. This training, which was held at the HISP Uganda training centre, aims to support the UAC as it expands its use of DHIS2. More

DHIS2 Server Administration Training
HISP WCA coordinated a DHIS2 Server Administration Training, 17-21 February in Lomé, Togo, for IT technicians from the country’s Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education. This training is part of the ongoing DHIS2 for Education work in Togo, supported by KIX. More

SEMIS Training in Eswatini
Also in February, HISP WCA collaborated with HISP Sri Lanka, HISP Uganda and Saudigitus to hold a training workshop in Manzini, Eswatini, about the DHIS2 for Education SEMIS app for school, student, and staff data. DHIS2 implementers discussed their experiences with deploying SEMIS to various countries, and they identified challenges, best practices, and strategies to strengthen app adoption at the school level. More