Programs
ACE for Women’s Leadership
The Institute of International Education in Ethiopia has designed the African Centers of Excellence for Women’s Leadership (ACE) with funding from The David and Lucile Packard Foundation. ACE aims to develop the capabilities of four women-led organizations in East Africa to be centers of excellence in the delivery of leadership development programs, research and knowledge generation on reproductive health, economic empowerment and girls’ education. ACE responds to an articulated need by women across the continent for a strategic leadership development program and for a stronger and more coordinated effort to help women advocate for issues that most concern them. The four organizations are intended to serve as places where women can come together for leadership training, strategizing, researching and sharing of best practices across the region.
Ethiopian Women’s Leadership Program
Funded by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Ethiopian Women’s Leadership Program (EWLP) creates champions of women’s health, education and economic empowerment through leadership development. The program supports female university students from four of the major Ethiopian universities. Through a nine-month program that includes a service-learning component, young women are able to strengthen their educational outcomes and emerge as the next generation of women leaders. Through this program, IIE Addis Ababa also works with university administrators, gender officers and academic staff to support their professional development and assist them in strengthening the systems which support women students.
Higher Education Readiness Program
The Institute of International Education’s Higher Education Readiness program (HER) provides young women in secondary school from underserved communities with a pathway to university. A new three-year pilot project in Ethiopia, HER will provide 100 girls entering the 11th grade with scholarship support combined with innovative leadership and life skills training to help them complete their secondary education and equip them with the tools needed to continue on to university.
Leadership Development for Mobilizing Reproductive Health Program
Implemented in collaboration with IIE West Coast, the Leadership Development for Mobilizing Reproductive Health Program (LDM), sponsored by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, has supported more than 1,200 emerging and established leaders who have the vision and commitment to improve family planning and reproductive health (RH) services in Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, and the Philippines. LDM fellows are public health professionals, journalists, Islamic scholars, academics, lawyers, community health workers, doctors, nurses and government employees and they lead nonprofits, faith-based organizations, and public sector departments as advocates for strong, protective RH policies. Among issues of interest are community level family planning services, HIV/AIDS prevention, and youth empowerment. The LDM program believes that collective leadership can be a powerful agent for making lasting, systemic change.
Maternal Health Young Champions Fellowship
The Maternal Health Young Champions Fellowship offers a unique fellowship to 10 young people who are passionate about improving maternal health in their home country. Selected Young Champions will be matched with in-country mentors and organizations for a nine-month research or field project internship focusing on a particular area of maternal health.
New York University Abu Dhabi
Designed to draw the most talented and creative students and faculty from around the world, NYU Abu Dhabi represents a transformative shift in higher education, one in which the intellectual and creative endeavors of academia are shaped and examined through an international and multicultural perspective. IIE partners with NYU Abu Dhabi to identify exceptional secondary school students through high-impact outreach across the globe.