September 8, 2026 | Project C.U.R.E
On August 25, more than a dozen partners from four continents gathered on a single video call to formally close the Oromia Healthcare Improvement Project, or OHIP. It began with a phone call between Dr. Ayoob of Project C.U.R.E. and Dr. Monem of Islamic Relief Canada. Two and a half years later, it ended with 41 containers of medical equipment and supplies delivered to 55 public health facilities across Ethiopia's largest region.
This is what Project C.U.R.E. does. The organization assesses facilities, curates containers to meet the specific needs on the ground, and moves them from its Denver, Houston, Phoenix, Nashville, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Kansas City warehouses to the ports and, ultimately, to the hands of clinicians. OHIP followed that model at scale. Every one of the 41 containers was packed by hand by Project C.U.R.E. volunteers, matched to a facility through an on-site needs assessment, and shipped with a plan for what would happen once it arrived. Together, they carried 8.6 million individual medical items with a verified value of $15.3 million — about 2.4 billion Ethiopian birr.
Numbers only carry you so far. The facilities that received these containers see 8.87 million patient visits every year — roughly 10,800 patients walking through their doors every single day. In the recent impact evaluation, 98.6 percent of health workers reported that the donated equipment improved patient care, and 96.6 percent said they use it daily or weekly. Patient satisfaction scored 4.3 out of 5. Surgical services in 49 facilities were strengthened with 248 instrument kits. About 220,000 births take place each year at the hospitals the project supported.
None of this happens through one organization. Islamic Relief Canada invested approximately one million U.S. dollars and provided the leadership that held OHIP together — anchored by Khalid Kamal, who managed the project, and by CFO Fariha Shafiq. Islamic Relief Ethiopia, under Country Director Ahmed Abajovar, handled implementation, installation, training, and follow-up at every facility. Haramaya University, led by President Dr. Jamal Yusuf, absorbed the customs clearance and last-mile logistics as a donation. The Oromia Regional Health Bureau, represented by Dr. Bokana, kept the work aligned with regional priorities. And the Ethiopian diaspora — Lammiif Relief and Development, the Mako Foundation, the Jara and Jiru Foundation, and the Safar community — mobilized $1.1 million of the $1.63 million in cash that made the whole thing possible.
A special word about Jo Sullivan. OHIP was Jo's project. Sullivan was Project C.U.R.E.'s Executive Director in Houston through nearly the entire arc of this work. From the very first phone call until she stepped away to care for her family. Khalid called Jo the heartbeat of OHIP, and every partner on the call agreed. Erin Kemp stepped into the Houston role in time to see the project land, and Kemp will carry forward whatever comes next.
Every dollar this partnership put in came out more than twelve times bigger on the other side. That is what a coalition can do when each partner brings what only they can.
The chapter closed on August 25. On behalf of Project C.U.R.E., President and CEO Douglas Jackson extended an offer to the partners to open the next one. Chapter 2.0 is ready when they are.
