Maternity Ward for HIV+ Women in Kamenge, Burundi

FOR PROGRESS ON THE CONSTRUCTION PLEASE SEE PICTURES.

For a long time, FWA had vision to extend its services offered in Kamenge community through our Ntaseka clinic. On one hand, the main objective is to make available all the services in the poor community of Kamenge where we are working. On the other hand, we must have the minimum package of service required by the Minister of public health and the fight against HIV/AIDS.

After visiting Canada in May 2017, Vancouver Island Monthly Meeting (VIMM) has pledged $ 21,400 (USD) to start construction work. It was in the month of November 2017. Thus we contracted an engineer to make plans and specifications in April 2018. Then, in May 2018, we contacted the National Laboratory of Building and Public Works to do the study of the soil.

We received funds through GlobalGiving Platform respectively as of June 25, 2018 ($ 65.70) and as of July 26, 2018 ($ 49.50). We used this total of $ 115.2 for the site installation. The Vancouver Funds reached us at the end of August 2018. At the same time, we received $ 440 through GG on August 24, 2018. With these funds, we began our construction project. We are in partnership with the construction company "Generation Trading Company" which closely follows this work.

With the amount already received and other funds that we hope to collect through GlobalGiving, we hope to complete the ground floor this year 2018. We have felt that this project can last three years.

FWA has planned to extend its services here in Kamenge and its surrounding communities by building on FWA's second plot of land. There we will have new services such as maternity and hospitalization. The new building will have consultation, laboratory, counseling room, and administration offices. We expect this building project to last for three years starting January 2018.

As the new building appears very expensive (US$100,000), we have planned to build first the ground floor, costing $50,000 which will include the maternity ward. Ntaseka Clinic has found that 6% of women with an average age of 24 years tested at the clinic are HIV+. Many of these women will have children which currently are mostly being delivered in other places with a great possibility of transmitting the HIV status to their newborn babies. With the addition of the maternity ward these women who will have attended the clinic for pre-natal care will be able to deliver in the new maternity ward where they will receive proper medical care so that they do not convey their status to their children.

Vancouver Island Monthly Meeting has supported the project with US$20,000. These funds will be available on FWA account by the end of August 2018. Through Global Giving’s Platform, we were able to raise US$6,570. We received these funds at the end of June 2018. Now, we have just started the site implementation as you can see in the photos. We hope to have a significant part of the building completed next time we report.