CHAMPS Sierra Leone
About Our Work
CHAMPS Sierra Leone joined the Network in 2018 and completed its first MITS in 2019. The program operates across two districts: Bombali in the Northern Province and Bo in the Southern Province. CHAMPS activities are implemented through a partnership between the Africa Research Collaborative (ARC), World Hope International, and Focus 1000, working closely with the Ministry of Health. CHAMPS Sierra Leone leverages strong relationships with local leaders, health facilities, and community networks to improve child health and mortality surveillance.
Our Impact
In Sierra Leone, CHAMPS is making a significant impact on child health by conducting comprehensive mortality surveillance in two key districts. Through data interventions, local partnerships, and state-of-the-art facilities, we are addressing critical health challenges and creating a hopeful future for vulnerable communities.
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Population Under Surveillance
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Under-5 Mortality Rate
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Infant Mortality Rate(/1000)
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Neonatal Mortality Rate (/1000)
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Maternal Mortality Rate
Data updated: 2021
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Meet our Directors
Dr. Ike Ogbuanu is a medical doctor and epidemiologist with more than 25 years of progressive experience in clinical medicine, academic research, global public health, vaccinology, leadership, and management. In addition to peer-reviewed publications in HIV/AIDS, infectious disease epidemiology, vaccine-preventable diseases, and genetic epidemiology, he has substantial clinical and programmatic experience in the control of tropical and infectious diseases at the global, national, subnational, and health facility levels.
Dr. Ogbuanu joined the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2009 as an Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) officer with the Global Immunization Division. Over the subsequent 10 years (2009–2020), he worked for CDC at the Atlanta Headquarters and as a detailee to the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland. During this period, Dr. Ogbuanu advanced implementation research and policy at the global level through quantitative and qualitative health research, program design and implementation, technical policy development, and international health diplomacy. He has led or participated in multiple global multilateral working groups and sub-teams and has managed successful collaborations and direct technical support in Asia, Africa, the Western Pacific, the Eastern Mediterranean, Europe, and the Americas.
Dr. Ogbuanu is adept at managing cross-functional teams and complex relationships with key global development partners, including USAID, the Gavi Alliance, the Gates Foundation, the US-CDC, vaccine manufacturers, UNICEF, and ministries of health, with a focus on reducing preventable childhood mortality and promoting the equitable use of evidence-based health interventions. His greatest passion is in applying public health science and strategies to reduce disease morbidity and mortality in low and middle-income countries (LMICs).
Dr. Ogbuanu is a recipient of multiple awards, including the USC Gerry Sue Arnold Alumni Award (2019); the CDC Excellence in Public Health Service Award, (2014); CDC Award for Excellence in Public Health Protection (2010); USC Doctoral Achievement Award (2009); USC Outstanding Epidemiology Student (2008-2009 session); Michael D. Jarrett Scholarship Award in Recognition of Leadership Potential in Public Health Administration (2005-2006); World Bank Scholar (2004-2006); among others. He completed his medical training at the University of Nigeria in 1998. Following six years of clinical practice in Nigeria, he relocated to the United States to pursue a postgraduate education in Public Health, obtaining his Master of Public Health (MPH) degree in 2006, and his PhD in Epidemiology and Biostatistics in 2009, both from the University of South Carolina (USC), Columbia.
Dr. Ogbuanu currently serves as the Principal Investigator for the CHAMPS site in Sierra Leone, as well as the CEO of the ARC for Health and an Adjunct Professor of Global Health at the Hubert Department of Global Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Dr. Amara Jambai (MD, MSc, DLSHTM) is a distinguished public health leader and former senior government official with decades of service to Sierra Leone’s health sector. He previously served as Chairman of NACOVERC (2021-2023), Deputy Minister of Health (2019-2020), Chief Medical Officer (2018-2019), and Director of Disease Prevention and Control. From 2002 to 2008, he was the District Medical Officer for the Western Area.
His professional expertise spans outbreak response, epidemiology, and infectious disease surveillance. He has led and contributed to research on cholera, yellow fever, and viral hemorrhagic fevers. Dr. Jambai served as President of the Sierra Leone Medical and Dental Association from 2009 to 2010 and remains an active member of the organization. He also represented Sierra Leone at the WHO Regional Committee for Africa from 2011 to 2012.
Dr. Jambai brings deep technical and leadership experience to CHAMPS Sierra Leone, guiding strategic implementation while strengthening national public health capacity.
Key Partners
CHAMPS Working in Sierra Leone to Save Lives
Discover how CHAMPS is saving children’s lives in Sierra Leone. Read more about our transformative, data-driven work and inspiring stories of change.
Site Stories
Publication
Kamara, S. I. B., Kowuor, D., Samura, S. S., Jambai, A., Dewey, B., Kosia, B. A., Balogun, O., Kaluma, E., Bernard, E. G., Bah, A. O., Ameh, S., Whitney, C., Breiman, R. F., & Ogbuanu, I. U. (2024). Laying the foundations for high-quality mortality surveillance in Sierra Leone: Early learnings from the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) Network [version 1; peer review: 1 approved, 1 approved with reservations]. Gates Open Research, 8, 98. https://doi.org/10.12688/gatesopenres.15986.1
July 30, 2024
Enhancing Healthcare Referral Systems to improve maternal and birth outcomes and reduce under-5 mortality – CHAMPS catchment areas, Sierra Leone, 2023-2024
August 1, 2024
Translating findings from child mortality audits into life-saving interventions: CHAMPS Sierra Leone success story.
August 1, 2024
Translating findings from child mortality audits into life-saving interventions: CHAMPS Sierra Leone success story.
Publication
Initial Death Notification Results from the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) Sierra Leone Pilot Phase, October 2017 to February 2018
Publication
Ojulong, J., Gebru, G. N., Duduyemi, B., Gbenda, E., Janneh, M. L., Sharty, J., Monteiro, L., Kowuor, D., Ameh, S., & Ogbuanu, I. U. (2024). Prevalence of antimicrobial resistance in Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter cloacae, and Escherichia coli isolates among stillbirths and deceased under-five children in Sierra Leone: Data from the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance sites from 2019 to 2022. Microorganisms, 12(8), 1657. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12081657
Publication
Effect of Delays in Maternal Access to Healthcare on Neonatal Mortality in Sierra Leone: A Social Autopsy Case-Control Study at a CHAMPS Site
Preslar, J. P., Worrell, M. C., Kaiser, R., Cain, C. J., Samura, S., Jambai, A., Raghunathan, P. L., Clarke, K., Goodman, D., Christiansen-Lindquist, L., Webb-Girard, A., Kramer, M., & Breiman, R. (2021). Effect of delays in maternal access to healthcare on neonatal mortality in Sierra Leone: A social autopsy case–control study at a Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) site. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 25(8), 1326–1335. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-021-03132-4