Zambia: ICRC to build hostel for mine victims
05-03-2004 News Release 04/28
The University Teaching Hospital in Lusaka, the largest medical facility in Zambia, has a fully operational limb-fitting centre that the ICRC has been supporting since 1997, providing it with material and helping it to build up its capacity.
The centre is meant to assist the thousands of refugees who have lost limbs in mine accidents while fleeing conflicts in neighbouring countries. However, the enormous distances that must be covered and the great number of disabled refugees have made it impossible to treat everyone and ensure proper follow-up in the camps.
To better serve the needs of mine victims, the ICRC has decided to renovate the limb-fitting centre and build a 12-bed hostel where patients can stay while they are being treated. Around 155,000 Swiss francs have been allocated to the project, which will enable many more disabled refugees to be cared for and thus improve the quality of their lives. The ICRC will also provide patients with transport and meals.
For further information, please contact:
Marco Jimenez, ICRC Harare, tel. ++ 263 4 790 268/9