UK ambassador to The Gambia, Colin Crorkin on Thursday delivered a statement at the launch of the maternity unit project funded by the British Embassy in partnership with the Derek Bailey Foundation, the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and the Village Development Committee of Nyofelleh, Kombo South.
The aim of the project is to provide quality maternity unit offering ante and postnatal care to the women of Nyofelleh and surrounding villages to ensure a safe environment for delivery of babies with the support of trained healthcare staff. Health awareness within the community will also be addressed by the provision of such a service.
Speaking at the event, Ambassador Colin Crorkin said: “This Embassy-funded project is being implemented in partnership with the Derek Bailey Foundation, the Village Development Committee of Nyofelleh and the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare with the aim of contributing towards the delivery of quality maternal health care services in Nyofelleh. The project will construct a maternity unit building and provide accommodation for a trained midwife. The establishment of a safe environment that has trained personnel will ensure quality health care delivery at the pre-pregnancy, pregnancy, birth and post-natal stages.
“Once completed – and the plan is for this to happen within three months – this maternity unit will contribute towards achieving The Gambia’s maternity health targets and contribute towards assisting women during vulnerable stages of their pregnancy. The British Embassy is proud to be associated with this project: it will contribute towards reducing the maternal mortality ratio and facilitate access to quality reproductive health care continuing progress in an area where The Gambia has already made significant gains.
“I am also delighted that the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the VDC and community members will play an important role in this project. Once the maternity unit has been completed, it is also hoped that other local communities in The Gambia can mirror these successes by working in partnership with organisations such as the Derek Bailey Foundation and the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in the provision of quality health care. I wish you well for the day and it is with great honour that I launch this project and I look forward to a successful project implementation that will serve the needs of the community and contribute towards strengthening health care delivery in The Gambia.”
Speaking at the launching ceremony, Abdou Colley, National Assembly Member for Kombo South, thanked the British Embassy and the Derek Bailey Foundation for funding the project. He said the project “will go a long way to alleviate the hardship women usually undergo”.
The village development committee chairman for Nyofelleh, Mr Malang Dahaba, applauded this health delivery intervention and conveyed his sincere gratitude towards this life changing initiative.
A representative of the Derek Bailey Foundation also extended their gratitude for the collaboration and said he looked forward to a good project implementation. They thanked the community for their efforts and the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare for the provision of a midwife.
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