Our work

The figure below provides an overview of the organizational structure of the ENABLE project.

Work Package 1 (WP1): Coordination and Communication

WP1 is responsible for the project management, coordination and communication and dissemination of the ENABLE project. The main tasks include administrative management, progress monitoring, risk management, data management and data handling, and dissemination and communication. The two co-principal investigators, Dr Eleni Papadopoulou and Dr Masresha Tessema maintain scientific oversight of the project. 

Work Package 2 (WP2): Context and Innovation

WP2 explores cross-cutting challenges and enabling factors, including the characteristics of the intervention, the food and built environment, user experience, context, and the type of facilitation required for successful implementation of the multi-level intervention at scale across four Ethiopian urban sites. Moreover, WP2 will adopt the NCD prevention intervention to context-specific needs and develop a bundle of pragmatic implementation strategies.

Work Package 3 (WP3): Facilitation

WP3 combines findings from each task to support the successful facilitation of the intervention. This includes recruiting and training facilitator, piloting the implementation of the intervention, and conducting a process evaluation for the implementation.

Work Package 4 (WP4): Evaluation Study

WP4 will conduct the evaluation of the ENABLE implementation in reducing NCD risk among pregnant women in Ethiopia. Additionally, WP4 will take on tasks to: evaluate the innovation of improving the health of women and their children, from birth to 18 months; assess the effectiveness of the individual-based intervention on improving the overall quality of ANC provision; and conduct a biomarker sub-study to better understand the association between material exposure to environmental risks and early NCD risk in childhood. 

Work Package 5 (WP5): ANC Strengthening and NCD Monitoring

WP5 will implement the WHO’s Digital Adaptation Kit (DAK) to strengthen ANC quality and to support the implementation of the ENABLE intervention. Objectives include establishing a HIS infrastructure of sustainable NCD risk surveillance in primary health care; implementing digital tools for the delivery of intervention and monitoring outcomes; and creating a data culture among health works that deliver the ENABLE intervention.

Work Package 6 (WP6): Urban Environment

WP6 will coordinate the mapping of the urban environment and environmental risks at the four study urban sites and implement a monitoring campaign for the longitudinal assessment of environmental risks to support the outcomes for the effectiveness trial (WP4) and the risk characterization for the adaptation of the communication messages and strategies (WP2). Specific objectives include: mapping the current state of environmental determinants for NCD risks deriving from the urban environment; implementing a monitoring campaign for the longitudinal assessment of environmental risks; and, conducting a Health Impact Assessment of the current environment risk for NCDs.

Work Package 7 (WP7): Equity

WP7 will focus on equity, including good research practices, gender dimensions, and user involvement. The main objectives include understanding and monitoring equity aspects in terms of age, gender, and socio-economic level inequalities that can affect the implementation process; ensuring equity throughout the implementation; and assessing whether the effect of a health intervention is equitable.

Work Package 8 (WP8): Policy Engagement and Scale-Up

WP8 will coordinate: communication activities to achieve early engagement of policy stakeholders from multiple sectors; participatory activities to support actions towards revisions or establishment of the regulatory and legal scene towards a health promoting urban environment, universal health coverage and prevention of early chronic disease; and support recommendations for prioritization of public health interventions, by conducting Health Impact Assessment (HIA) and cost-effectiveness assessment.

Work Package 9 (WP9): Sustainability and Exploitation

WP8 aims to achieve long-term sustainability and enhanced exploitation of ENABLE products through capacity-building activities in the core scientific areas of ENABLE: implementation science, environmental health, and environmental monitoring, HIS, and digital health. In addition, WP9 will assure that all training materials and toolkits are easily accessible and readily available to support the use of real-time data in decision-making.

Work Package 10 (WP10): Ethics Advisory Board

The independent ENABLE Ethics Advisory Board will assess the ethical merits of the work performed by the ENABLE Consortium, provide independent recommendations, and, if required, report to the Commission/Agency/Funding Body regarding project compliance. When appropriate, the EAB can offer advice on approval requirements, risk- benefit assessments, guidance on specific ethical questions concerning relevant legal framework and regulatory requirements in the countries where the research takes place. Members of this board are independent advisors to the project and will deliver an assessment of each reporting period.