The University of Nairobi (UoN) HIV Fellowship programme was established in 2008 to build the capacity of indigenous Kenyans to run large scale HIV programmes.  The aim of the program is to provide Leadership and Management skills to professionals managing Health Programs in Kenya and support service delivery in partner institutions.

The Fellowship is funded by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and implemented by University of Nairobi Institute of Tropical and Infectious Diseases (UNITID) in collaboration with the University of Washington (UW).  Within the University UNITID works closely with the Scholl of Business, School of Computing and Informatics, School of medicine, School of Journalism and Mass Communication and the School of Extramural Studies. The fellowship Programme prides itself in providing competency based training that creatively combines class based training with experiential learning and mentorship.

The programme provides three types of training:

Long Term Fellowship – Targets mid to senior level public health professionals in the public and private sector to build their capacity to provide evidence-based and effective public health leadership and management. Training is full time for 24 months (6 months class based training, 18 months experiential learning). Fellows can specialize in:

1. HIV Program Management

2. Health Informatics

3. Health Economics

Candidates eligible in the tracks should have relevant Masters Degrees in the prospective area of study.

Medium Term Fellowship In Monitoring And Evaluation – An in service training targeting professionals working health institutions. The program is designed to build institutional capacity through training individuals in Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Training is for  6 months (2 months class based training, 4 months experiential learning). The admission requirements are for individuals with relevant Bachelors degree; familiarity with the Kenya health care system and HIV/AIDS programs; interest in applying M &E in health.

Short courses – Designed to provide specific skills to programme managers at all levels. The short courses are implemented via face to face or through web cast technology.  Training is for 5-10 days. Candidates are sourced from private and public sector depending on the specific course.

Achievements

• Over 1,200 participants across the country have been trained on various short courses. Through online short courses people in far flung areas like Wajir and Lamu have accessed training.

• To date the program has trained a total of 30 fellows out of which 12 are in the graduating class.