Rwandan Health Center Supported by Leading Pediatric AIDS Foundation Welcomes Representatives from the Governments of Rwanda and the United States; Showcases Work to Prevent HIV and Malaria in Women and Children
4/1/2008
Rwanda Minister of Health Dr. J. Damascene Ntawukuriryayo (left), with Foundation Country Director Dr. Nancy Fitch, and Foundation staff member Dr. Sowaf Ubarijoro at the Masaka Health Center.
|
Kigali, Rwanda—Representatives from the governments of Rwanda and the United States visited a Kigali health clinic yesterday supported by the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, where progress is being made to protect women and children from HIV and malaria.
Rwanda’s Minister of Health, Dr. Jean Damascène Ntawukuliryayo, and the Executive Secretary of the National AIDS Control Commission, Dr. Agnes Binagwaho, visited the Masaka Health Center in Kicukiro District, Kigali City. The government of Rwanda representatives were accompanied on a tour of the facilities by officials of the United States government, including Jay Hein, the Director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, Admiral Timothy Ziemer, the United States Malaria Coordinator, and Cheryl J. Sim, the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires in Rwanda.
The Masaka Health Center serves more than 20,000 people and is supported by the Foundation and Twubakane Decentralization and Health Program. The tour highlighted the wide range of health services available at the health center and the collaborative approach between the U.S. and Rwandan governments and nongovernmental organizations in fighting HIV/AIDS and malaria.
The Foundation, with support from the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through the U.S. Agency for International Development, provides lifesaving antiretroviral treatment to people living with HIV/AIDS, voluntary counseling and testing, and prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV services in Masaka.
“Health centers like the Masaka Health Center are the lifeline for the community,” said Nancy Fitch, the Foundation’s country director in Rwanda. “By offering holistic, coordinated services involving all the stakeholders, we can achieve our goals of ensuring that families and communities have high-quality care at their doorsteps.”
With funding from the U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), Twubakane trains community health workers to treat fever in children under five (a symptom of malaria), and provides essential drugs to prevent malaria in pregnant women.
Hein commented that Rwanda “is a model of commitment to a multisectoral approach, drawing upon the strengths of governmental and nongovernmental organizations, including civil society, faith and community-based organizations, and the private sector.”
Admiral Ziemer discussed the importance of integrating HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis services. “By leveraging the expertise and abilities of all partners trying to improve the health and well-being of their fellow citizens, we can scale up and sustain these lifesaving programs and beat preventable and treatable diseases.”