Background and Objectives: Although the goal of translational research is to bring biomedicalrnknowledge from the laboratory to clinical trial and therapeutic products for improving health, thisrngoal has not been well achieved as often as desired because of many barriers documented inrndifferent countries. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the challenges andrnopportunities of translating animal research into human trials in Ethiopia. rnMethods: A descriptive qualitative study, using in-depth interviews, was conducted in whichrnpreclinical and clinical trial researchers who have been involved in animal research or clinical trialsrnas principal investigator were involved. Data were analyzed using thematic process. rnResults: Six themes were emerged for challenges: lack of financial and human capacity, inadequaterninfrastructure, operational obstacles and poor research governance, lack of collaboration, lack ofrnreproducibility of results and prolonged ethical and regulatory approval processes. Furthermore,rnfour themes were synthesized for opportunities: growing infrastructure and resources, improvedrnhuman capacity and better administrative processes, initiatives for collaboration, and similaritiesrnbetween species. rnConclusion and recommendations: The study found that the identified characteristics/features arernof high importance either to hurdle or enable the practice of translating animal research into humanrntrials. The study suggests that there should be adequate infrastructure and finance, human capacityrnbuilding, good research governance, improved ethical and regulatory approval process,rnmultidisciplinary collaboration, and incentives and recognition for researchers to overcome thernidentified challenges and allow translating of animal research into human trials to proceed morernefficiently.