This donation will improve services in 190 basic health centers and district hospitals in the Atsimo Andrefana region.

ANTANANARIVO — The U.S. Government, through the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) ACCESS health program, and in partnership with Project C.U.R.E., an American non-governmental organization that supplies medical equipment to developing countries, has donated 336 hospital beds and modern medical equipment for childbirth and surgery to 190 basic health centers and district hospitals in the Atsimo Andrefana region. The value of the donation is $825,000, more than 3.1 billion Ariary.

“Health workers need modern, reliable equipment in order to provide quality health services to patients,” said USAID Mission Director John Dunlop. “This equipment will help Madagascar strengthen its health system and be able to better respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

This delivery of three shipping containers full of hospital beds, mattresses, and medical equipment to the Atsimo Andrefana region is the latest in a series of shipments that began arriving in early 2020. Already four containers of medical materials have been handed over to the Ministry of Public Health to equip health centers in the Atsinanana, Analanjirofo, Vatovavy, and Fitovinany regions. Twenty-one other containers are expected to arrive in Madagascar in the coming months for the Menabe, Boeny, Sofia, Melaky, DIANA, and SAVA regions.

Through the USAID ACCESS program, the U.S. Government is working with the Government of Madagascar to rehabilitate and reequip regional health facilities so that patients feel confident going to their local medical center. “Donations like these support ongoing efforts by the Ministry of Public Health to encourage citizens to seek out health care,” said Dr. Serge Raharison, USAID ACCESS Program Director.

At the official handover ceremony in Tulear, Dr. Louisette Rasoanandrasana, the Regional Director of Public Health for Atsimo Andrefana, declared, “These items come at the right time to support our efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, strengthen our health system, and ensure our care centers are ready to receive all patients. We are proud to ally with the USAID ACCESS program and to be able to count on them as our strategic partner working towards a common goal: saving lives.”

The U.S. Government and the Government of Madagascar are working together like “mpirahalahy mianala” to improve the capacity and quality of health care in Madagascar. Last year, USAID assistance to Madagascar totaled $133.5 million. The U.S. Government is the largest single-country donor to Madagascar's health sector, providing $72 million in 2020 alone to fund USAID’s health projects. These projects reduce Madagascar's maternal and child mortality, provide access to potable water and sanitation, protect communities from malaria, improve access to family planning, ensure a reliable supply chain of vital health care supplies and medication, and reinforce the national community health policy.

Press Release by USAID Madagascar / U.S. Embassy Madagascar