- In June 2025, the UK Emergency Medical Team (EMT) and Ethiopian Emergency Medical Team (EMT) conducted a joint training exercise to strength and prepare medical response to humanitarian crises in the region and globally.
- FCDO continues to facilitate the partnership between the two EMTs and donated a mobile hospital (type I field hospital) to the Ethiopian EMT.
- UK-Med is the official UK Emergency Medical Team (EMT). When the UK Government is asked for emergency assistance, UK-Med is called upon to provide rapid, expert medical support.
Continuous training and learning are vital parts of an Emergency Medical Team (EMT), and in June the UK-EMT partnered with their Ethiopian counterparts to conduct a two-day simulation exercise (SIMEX), in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
This event included the construction of a type I field hospital, donated by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), a well-attended ceremony to formalise the donation, and a two-day full-scale SIMEX.
Through partnering, training and learning together, both EMT’s were able to develop their knowledge and become better prepared for future challenges, individually and as a team.
“This has not simply been one team passing on greater knowledge to another. It’s been a genuine partnership in which both of us have benefited.” - David Wightwick, CEO, UK-MED
The simulation exercise involved participants from UK-Med and Ethiopia’s EMT working in close collaboration to effectively respond to scenarios likely to occur in humanitarian crises. This was the first opportunity the Ethiopian EMT had to use the newly donated field hospital, and was invaluable training for both teams.
The event was a significant step forward towards the Ethiopian EMT being formally recognised by the World Health Organization for EMT classification. This will allow them to deploy regionally and globally, responding to humanitarian emergencies to the highest standard.
Darren Welch, the UK Ambassador to Ethiopia, and Dr. Mekdes Daba, the Minister of Health for Ethiopia attended the ceremonny, and bothoth were impressed with the type I hospital facility and commended the partnership between the continued UK and Ethiopia.
“The world continues to face complex but also very frequent challenges. I think there is no better time to get prepared” - Dr Mekdes Daba, Minister of Health for Ethiopia.
Alongside the SIMEX and training, UK-Med and the Ethiopian Public Health Institute signed an agreement to continue sharing expertise and technical assistance. This confirms the strength of the partnership and commitment to reciprocal learning and training.
UK-Med works with EMTs all over the world to help establish, train, build and develop high-quality emergency health provision during sudden onset disasters, conflict or disease outbreaks. Through training and preparedness exercises, such as the SIMEX in Addis Ababa, UK-Med shares its extensive experience in global humanitarian responses, whilst learning and growing to manage new challenges faced in 2025 and beyond.
Note to Editors
The ceremony attendees included officials from the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH), Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), other ministries and agencies, representatives from regional health bureaus, professional associations, humanitarian and development partners such as Africa CDC, UN agencies, NGOs, emergency response professionals, EMT members, and media partners.
