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Published
by the
Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America,
September 23, 2005
Philoptochos Supports Construction of IOCC
Clinic and School in Ethiopia |
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September 23, 2005
Baltimore, Md. (IOCC) – At a meeting of its
National Board, held in Boston, Mass. on
September 17, 2005, the Greek Orthodox Ladies
Philoptochos Society committed its support for a
$60,000 project to develop a medical clinic and
school in Ambo, Ethiopia to be constructed by
International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC)
in cooperation with the Ethiopian Orthodox
Church.
IOCC executive director Constantine M.
Triantafilou made a presentation on the project
to the Philoptochos National Board, extending
gratitude for the support which comes just one
week after Philoptochos made a $50,000
contribution to IOCC’s relief efforts along the
U.S. Gulf Coast.
“The generous support of the Ladies Philoptochos
Society enables IOCC to continue to respond to
the needs of our brothers and sisters overseas
even as we face one of the biggest disasters in
the United States,” said Triantafilou.
A portion of the proceeds from the Tenth
Children’s Medical Fund Luncheon to be hosted by
the Philoptochos Society on Dec. 3, 2005 in
Dallas, Texas will support the medical clinic.
Additional fundraising efforts by the
Philoptochos Society chapters will make
construction of the school possible.
The 6-room medical clinic will be located in the
West Showa Diocese in the Oromiya Region of
Ethiopia. The clinic will adjoin a school and
serve the area’s population at large, but also
specifically focus on the provision of free
medical care and free primary education to HIV
and AIDS-infected orphans.
Ambo’s population is rapidly growing due to its
status as a center for industry, trade and jobs.
The town’s infrastructure, however, is
ill-suited to support this influx of people and
the current government-run health facilities are
over-burdened, under-staffed and poorly
equipped. The health status of the region ranks
among the lowest in the country.
“The important support extended by Philoptochos
Society will help deliver significant services
which address the tremendous needs of Ethiopia’s
children – especially those infected with HIV
and AIDS,” said Bishop Andonios, Greek Orthodox
Archdiocese Director of Philanthropy who visited
Ethiopia earlier this year and met with Church
officials.
Data from 2004 indicates that less than half of
Ethiopians have access to health services. The
national coverage for immunization has only
achieved only a third of its goal of full
immunization. Malaria is the leading cause of
outpatient visits, admissions in hospitals and
deaths for both infants and adults. It is
estimated that 1.4 million Ethiopians are
HIV-positive. Approximately 120,000 Ethiopians
die from AIDS-related causes per year and there
are more than one million HIV/AIDS orphans in
the country.
The clinic will include a much-needed medical
diagnostic and treatment clinic to serve the
population of Ambo and the surrounding villages.
The clinic will be outfitted with modern
equipment and staff trained not only in advanced
medical treatment and care, but also in care,
support and counseling techniques for people
living with HIV/AIDS. The adjoining school will
provide free education for children aged 4 to 6.
IOCC has been active in Ethiopia since 2001,
when it began supporting small-scale
agricultural projects in partnership with the
Ethiopian Orthodox Church’s relief office, the
Development and Inter-Church Aid Commission.
IOCC and the Ethiopian Orthodox Church are also
in the second year of a three-year, $6 million
project, supported by the U.S. Agency for
International Development (USAID), to offer
faith-based community care to nearly 9,000 AIDS
orphans and vulnerable children, provide
palliative care to more than 26,000 people
living with HIV/AIDS by 2007 and prevent future
infections of the disease.
Founded in 1992, IOCC is the official
humanitarian aid agency of the Standing
Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the
Americas (SCOBA). To learn more about IOCC’s
work in Ethiopia, please visit
www.iocc.org
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