Senait Fisseha

Since 2019, Fisseha has been a member of the Lancet–SIGHT Commission on Peaceful Societies Through Health and Gender Equality, chaired by Tarja Halonen.

Fisseha led the creation of the Center for International Reproductive Health Training (CIRHT) at the University of Michigan and held the title of founding executive director of the center until 2015. The CIRHT was founded to serve as a collaboration platform for University of Michigan faculty and faculty from medical institutions in sub-Saharan Africa and South East Asia where the reported maternal mortality rates are high. The goal of the center is to alleviate the burden of maternal mortality and to promote reproductive health and reproductive justice in these regions. Senate played a key role in founding the center and as a facilitator of the collaboration between her colleges at the University of Michigan and faculty at medical institutions in her native Ethiopia.

Fisseha was appointed as the director of International Programs at the Buffett Foundation in 2015, where she oversees international grant making and continues to advocate for global reproductive justice.

The Ethiopian Ministry of Health honored her with the highest award given in recognition of profound contribution to the health sector in 2013. In 2016, she received the early distinguished career achievement award from the University of Michigan medical center alumni society. She was also one of only 20 recipients of the University of Michigan Bicentennial Alumni Award for her "global leadership in expanding reproductive health services, especially in developing countries." The Association of Women in Business (AWiB) in Ethiopia has nominated her for the "Women of Excellence" award in 2016. She was also listed as one of the 100 most influential Africans of 2018 by the New Africa Magazine.

After completing high school, Fisseha briefly studied at Tikur Anbessa (Black Lion Medical School) in Addis Ababa. In 1989, she traveled to the United States, enrolled at Rosary College (now Dominican University), and earned a Bachelor of Science degree. Subsequently, she received Howard Hughes Medical Institute funding to pursue research at the University of Michigan. While at the University of Michigan, Senait developed new interests in the field of medical malpractice, specifically in the fields of obstetrics and gynecology. This, combined with an interest in international women's health and women's rights, led to pursuit of a joint Juris Doctor (JD)/Doctor of Medicine (MD) program. Senait earned a JD/MD degree from Southern Illinois University in 1999 with honors, and was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha honor society. She completed a residency in obstetrics and gynaecology in 2003, and a fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and infertility in 2006, at the University of Michigan medical center.

Senait Fisseha (born 1971) is an Ethiopian academic at University of Michigan working with reproductive endocrinology and infertility and director of international programs at the Susan Buffet Foundation. Fisseha has a law degree and is known for her work as an advocate for global reproductive health, rights and gender equality. She is the founder of the Center for International Reproductive Health Training (CIRHT) at the University of Michigan. She chaired the election campaign of Tedros Adhanom, the first African Director General of the World Health Organization, in 2016-17.

Born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 1971, Fisseha was the third youngest of ten siblings. Unlike her older siblings who were interested in engineering and physics, Senait demonstrated a passion for medicine from a very young age.