One of our partners developed an initiative to improve access to safe, affordable surgical care in low and middle-income countries. The initiative needed a skilled implementation team to support its three pillars: Leadership Development, Innovation, and Elevating Ideas. Axum staff supported its Design Phase and program hosting and coordination.

Axum staff built a detailed implementation plan for the next 3-5 years based on human-centered design research that informed programmatic decisions, planned and executed the official initiative launch as a UN General Assembly (UNGA) side event, and managed and coordinated the expansion of the initiative within sub-Saharan Africa to Southeast Asia while mobilizing key funding and implementation partners. Axum staff also worked to co-create clear messaging to amplify the initiative’s achievements.

Over five years, the initiative effectively advocated for policy change to address the root causes of inadequate access to surgery in Ethiopia, Tanzania and Cambodia. The initiative strengthened and supported the surgical workforce, tested and scaled innovations, shared insights, and elevated surgery within the global health community.