EDI and AHRI sign strategic agreement to commercialize health research

ADDIS ABABA — The Entrepreneurship Development Institute (EDI) and the Armauer Hansen Research Institute (AHRI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on June 16, 2026, to transform health-sector research outputs and innovative ideas into viable commercial products and practical medical solutions.

The agreement is a key component of the Ministry of Health's active engagement to strengthen health entrepreneurship with EDI. Operating under the Federal Ministry of Health, AHRI's partnership with EDI advances the nation's health innovation ecosystem by creating a structured pipeline designed to safely bridge the gap between laboratory breakthroughs and market adoption. Signed at the AHRI Headquarters, the framework combines EDI's expertise in entrepreneurship, innovation, business incubation, and enterprise growth with AHRI’s decades-long leadership in biomedical research.

The inter-institutional agreement targets five core pillars: health innovation, public entrepreneurship, innovation ecosystem building, research commercialization, and institutional capacity building.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Professor Afework Kassu, Director General of AHRI, highlighted that EDI's recent collaborations with major research and development institutions have become vital to anchoring the country’s health innovation networks. He added that the partnership will play a decisive role in expanding joint initiatives, particularly in translating clinical breakthroughs into entrepreneurial ventures.

EDI CEO Dr. Hassan Hussein stated that the agreement establishes a solid operational framework to identify, test, and implement joint institutional initiatives. He emphasized that the synchronized efforts of both institutes will pave the way for tangible, long-term socio-economic results across the country.

The collaboration will focus on building entrepreneurship and innovation capacity among AHRI’s scientific community, conducting market validation studies, and establishing robust intellectual property protection pathways.

The initiative is expected to accelerate national economic development through enhanced healthcare technology transfer, stronger health research, and import substitution driven by homegrown innovation and indigenous knowledge.