Country Director, Amref Health Africa, Ethiopia
As Country Director of Amref Health Africa, Misrak Makonnen leads a team of 350 employees working throughout Ethiopia to create lasting health change. During her tenure, Amref Ethiopia has precipitously expanded its portfolio in reproductive, maternal, neonatal and child health (RMNCH), health systems strengthening (HSS), water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and disease prevention and control.
Misrak’s passion for building respectful and strategic partnerships, as well as her commitment to accountability and efficiency has made Amref Ethiopia a trusted entity in NGO circles, with donors, foundations and with government ministries. Her vision is deeply rooted in a re- imagined development sector that truly centers localization, sustainability, and empowerment.
With over 20 years of international public health and development experience, Misrak began her career as a senior program officer at The Carter Center in Atlanta Georgia, working in the Guinea worm eradication program and the Trachoma Control Program in East and West Africa. With a keen eye trained towards living and working in her home country Ethiopia, Misrak honed her technical, program and financial management, capacity building, and business development skills at the Ethiopia offices of University of Washington I -TECH and IntraHealth International, and the East Africa Regional office of Catholic Relief Services, implementing multi-country PEPFAR HIV programs. Misrak holds a master’s degree in Public Health and a master’s degree in Business Administration from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. She lives in Addis Ababa with her husband and two young daughters.
