A four-party Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed today to improve access to health care services along the Djibouti - Ethiopia transport corridor. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the Government of Djibouti, Dubai-based global terminal operator DP World, and Family Health International (FHI) will serve as flagship partners on this project, which is the first U.S.-backed Public-Private Partnership in Djibouti.
The collaboration will further USAID’s Roads to a Healthy Future (‘ROADS II’) initiative that increases awareness of healthy behaviours and reduces HIV transmission and the impact of other health challenges along major transport corridors in nine East, Central and Southern African countries, including Djibouti. It will also form a key component of DP World’s community development objectives in the region, focused on health, education and job-creation. USAID’s ROADS II Project has established 38 SafeTStops along ‘hotspot’ transport towns in East and Central Africa where truckers, port workers and community members are able to receive access to basic medical care, health education, and a secure place to rest.
According to the terms of the MOU, DP World will oversee and fund construction of a new, 1600 square foot SafeTStop Community Center near DP World’s container terminal at Doraleh, outside the Djiboutian capital. Truckers, port workers and members of adjacent communities will benefit from a clinic with private examination rooms, a recreational center and access to Internet. USAID, FHI and the Government of Djibouti will be responsible for the facility’s operation.
The signing ceremony took place in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the Minister of International Cooperation, M. Ahmed Ali Silay; the Minister of Health, Abdallah Abdillahi Miguil; the U.S. Ambassador to Djibouti, James C. Swan; USAID Djibouti Representative, Stephanie Funk; FHI Project Director, Dorothy Muroki; Chairman of Djibouti Ports and Free Zone Authority, Aden Douale; Chief Executive Officer, Djibouti Port and Doraleh Container Terminal, Johannes (Hans) de Jong; and DP World’s Global Corporate Social Responsibility Coordinator, Ethan Chorin.
“This partnership will benefit thousands of people in the Djiboutian and Ethiopian transport sector, their families and members of surrounding communities,” Joost Kruijning, DP World’s Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Africa Region said from Dubai, “Wherever possible, DP World looks to expand the benefits of infrastructure projects to the urban and rural poor, and thereby contribute to balanced growth. We are proud to join forces with USAID, FHI, and the Government of Djibouti to make this possible.”
His Excellency the Djiboutian Minister of Health, Abdallah Abdillahi Miguil said: “More than 800 trucks a day transit along the Djibouti Ethiopia transport corridor. This partnership will strengthen our ability to improve health care and address HIV/AIDS along this heavily travelled road.”
The U.S. Ambassador to Djibouti, James C. Swan, noted, “This ground-breaking partnership brings both public and private sector resources together to target a key development challenge in Djibouti – health care along the transport corridor. Our hope is that this is the first of many public private partnerships that will contribute to the well-being of the people of Djibouti.”
DP World has signed a letter of intent with Locrete, a manufacturer of seismic-safe, pre-stressed concrete structures to assist with the construction of the new SafeTStop facility, which is expected to be completed early in 2011.
For more information contact:
Dana Khalaf Dana.khalaf@dpworld.com