Health in Eritrea

The Health in Eritrea has been poor on a world scale. Nevertheless, Eritrea is one of the few countries to be on target to meet its Millennium Development Goal targets for health. As of 2005, over two-thirds of the population lived below the national poverty line and the vast majority in rural areas, about one-third of the population lived in extreme poverty and more than half survived on less than US$1 per day. Researchers at the Overseas Development Institute have identified the health and education as a high priority, both within the government and amongst Eritreans at home and abroad. Innovative multi-sectoral approaches to health were also identified with the success.

Resources

Health care and welfare resources generally are believed to be poor, although reliable information about conditions is often difficult to obtain. In 2001, the Eritrean government spent 5.7 percent of gross domestic product on national health accounts. The World Bank's World DataBank estimated that in 2004 there were only 50 physicians per 100,000 people in Eritrea, while the World Health Organization estimated only 3. The two-year war with Ethiopia, coming on the heels of a 30-year struggle for independence, negatively affected the health sector and the general welfare. The rate of prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome, although low by sub-Saharan African standards, was high enough at 2.7 percent in 2003 to be considered a generalized epidemic.
Between 1995 and 2005, impressive results were achieved. Life expectancy at birth has increased from 39.1 in 1960 to 59.5 years in 2008, maternal and child mortality rates have dropped dramatically and the health infrastructure has been expanded. In 2008 average life expectancy was slightly less than 53 years, according to the WHO. Immunisation and child nutrition has been tackled by working closely with schools in a multi-sectoral approach; the number of children vaccinated against measles almost doubled in seven years, from 40.7% to 78.5% and the underweight prevalence among children decreased by 12% in 1995–2002. This has helped to some small extent even out rural-urban and rich-poor inequity in health.

Diseases

Malaria control is an important component of the Eritrean preventive health policy. The National Malaria Protection Unit of the Ministry of Health has registered tremendous improvements in reducing malarial mortality by as much as 85% and the number
of cases by 92% between 1998 and 2006. These impressive gains are the result of the Ministry of Health "...running strong and effective national programme..."

	Then	Now	Source
Life expectancy	39.1	77.19	CIA Fact book
Under five mortality rate per 1,000 live births	205	39.38	CIA Fact book
Immunisation coverage	34%	95%	MDG Indicators
Children underweight	43.7%	38.4%	DHS 1995/DHS 2002
Maternal mortality ratio per 100,000 live births	998	240	CIA Fact Book
Antenatal care coverage	48.9%	70.3%	DHS 1995/DHS 2002
Births attended by skilled health personnel	20.6%	28.3%	DHS 1995/DHS 2002
Health infrastructure	16 hospitals; 4 health centres; 106 health stations	25 hospitals; 52 health centres; 180 health stations; 113 clinics	MoH and WHO
Physicians	0.2	0.5	World DataBank

Hospitals

There were 272 medical facilities in Eritrea in 2019, including 22 hospitals listed below by type and location. The Hanssenian National Referral Hospital is managed by a NGO and the rest are managed by the Ministry of Health of Eritrea. The other 247 medical facilities are clinics and health centers managed by the Ministry of Health. There is also a psychiatric hospital, St Mary's Psychiatric Hospital Sembel, in the Eritrean capital, Asmara, Central Region.

Name	Region	Type facility	Ref
Keren Hospital	Anseba Region	Hospital
Adi Kuala Mini Hospital	Southern Region (Debub)	Mini Hospital
Adi Qeyh Hospital	Southern Region	Hospital
Dekemhare Hospital	Southern Region	Hospital
Mendefera Hospital	Southern Region	Hospital
Senafe Mini Hospital	Southern Region	Mini Hospital
Blienkoma Hospital	Southern Red Sea Region	Hospital
Edi Mini Hospital	Southern Red Sea Region	Mini Hospital
Thio Mini Hospital	Southern Red Sea Region	Mini Hospital
Aqhurdet Hospital	Gash-Barka Region	Hospital
Barentu Referral Hospital	Gash-Barka Region	Hospital
Teseney Hospital	Gash Barka Region	Hospital
Denden Hospital	Central Region	Hospital
Edaga Hamus Mini Hospital	Central Region	Mini Hospital
Halibet Hospital Kahawta	Central Region	Hospital
Hanssenian National Referral Hospital	Central Region	National referral hospital
Haz Haz Hospital	Central Region	Hospital
Sembel Hospital	Central Region	Hospital
Orotta National Referral Hospital	Central Region	National referral hospital
Mekane Hiwet Hospital	Central Region	Pediatrics hospital
Berhane Eye Hospital Mai Temenai	Central Region	Eye hospital
Afabet Hospital	Northern Red Sea	Hospital
Ghindae Hospital	Northern Red Sea	Hospital
Massawa Hospital	Northern Red Sea	Hospital
Nakfa Hospital	Northern Red Sea	Hospital

In 2003 Eritrea opened its first medical college in an effort to narrow the healthcare worker gap. By 2012 the medical college's graduates will triple the number of pediatricians and double the number of surgeons in Eritrea.