Southern Province Permanent Secretary Mwangala Liomba (left) and AHF country director Mabvuto Kango (far left) with senior medical personnel at Batoka rural health centre in Choma after AHF donated medical equipment, a Patients shelter and a modern container for male circumcision at the health centre. Picture by CHRISTINE MWAABA

By CHRISTINE MWAABA in CHOMA

A NON-Governmental Organisation (NGO), AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) has handed over various health infrastructure and medical equipment to Batoka rural health centre in Choma, Southern Province.

These are a patient waiting shelter and a modified container for male circumcision both valued at K252,750.

Speaking during the hand over ceremony in Batoka on Friday, AHF country director Mabvuto Kango said the K252,750 was also inclusive of equipment to be used in the two facilities.

“The infrastructure and equipment that has been given to the health centre will enable it to provide medical services that could not be provided previously. The centre will now provide voluntary medical circumcision services which is relatively low cost way to prevent HIV infections,” Dr Kango said.

He said community members accessing services at the facility would no longer be expected to wait while standing in the sun or rain due to the availability of the shelter.

Dr Kango said the institution had also donated 1,350 resusable sanitary pads to Batoka Primary School valued at K28,050.

This, he said was to reduce cases of girl child abstention and school drop outs on account of health reasons.

And Southern Province Permanent Secretary Mwangala Liomba commended AHF for supplementing Government’s efforts in the provision of effective and quality health care services to the people.

“It is gratifying to know that the facility will now provide more services including male circumcision for our people who previously walked long distances to access these services,” Mr Liomba said.