Zimpapers Logo

Tendai Rupapa

Senior Reporter

Innovative Healthcare Delivery (IHD) Life, a Switzerland-based global healthcare and pharmaceutical giant, has donated a state-of the-art ambulance to First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa’s Angel of Hope Foundation as part of measures to enhance Zimbabwe’s healthcare facilities and the availability of affordable medicines and diagnostics.

IHD Life honorary chairperson Ms Chitwan Malhotra said she was touched by the role being played by the First Lady to ensure everyone had access to good healthcare through her outreach programmes, hence the donation.

The First Lady is the country’s health ambassador who has been working hard to improve the lives of the people of Zimbabwe.

So passionate about the health of ordinary people that she has on many occasions, using the foundation’s mobile clinic, taken teams of medical experts across communities to screen citizens of breast cancer, cervical cancer and prostate cancer so that they can be diagnosed early and commence treatment early.

She mobilised a team of 18 medical professionals from the United States of America to provide free medical treatment to the country’s marginalised communities.

The First Lady accompanied the team to remote communities, including the Mola community in Nyaminyami rural, Kariba district, where the people were suffering from a rare condition of swelling stomachs, resulting in them vomiting blood.

Ms Malhotra, described the donation as a step towards helping Amai Mnangagwa realise her vision of making Zimbabwe a country with the best affordable medical facilities.

First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa poses for a photo with IHD Life honorary chairperson Ms Chitwan Malhotra at Zimbabwe House last year

“I was inspired by the passion with which Her Excellency, Amai Auxillia Mnangagwa, through the Angel of Hope Foundation, is championing the promotion and provision of healthcare to disadvantaged groups of people, particularly children, women and the elderly in rural areas of the country.

“I realised that we share common passionate interests on quality health delivery to all communities. In our spheres of operation, we both have been on the forefront of promoting SDGS, particularly SDG3, which aspires to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all which made us pledge to work hand-in-glove with the Angel of Hope Foundation towards seeing improved provision of adequate and quality healthcare to the majority of Zimbabwe,” she said.

The First Lady’s work, she said, had made a difference and contributed much towards the promotion of Sustainable Development Goals and many across the regional and continent were taking lessons.

“Due to the First Lady’s work, my organisation, IHD Life is ready to assist the Angel of Hope Foundation to make sure that it scales up its work across the country and today’s ambulance donation is a step in that direction,” she said.

In an acceptance speech read on her behalf by Angel of Hope Foundation chairperson Mrs Molly Dingane, the First Lady expressed gratitude to the company for its generosity saying the donation would help the foundation achieve its mission to make the accessibility of quality healthcare guaranteed to all.

“What makes me happy is the fact that whatever I do is for societies, communities, and the nation at large. It is encouraging when Angel of Hope Foundation receives support from various organisations and individuals to help further our mandate including the international community,” she said.

Health, Amai Mnangagwa said, is the greatest wealth as goals can only be achieved when the nation is in its prime status of well being.

She said in this Covid-19 era, the delivery of exceptional health services was needed now more than ever.

“As the nation’s health ambassador, I am passionate about the delivery of eminent health care services to the underprivileged, marginalised, women, youth and children in order for them to live wholesome lives,” she said.

“I am dedicated to the vision of Sustainable Development Goal number 3 whose mission statement is to “ensure healthy lives and promote well being for all at all ages.”

The First Lady said IHD Life after noticing that their thrust, rationale and vision were alike, decided to partner with Angel of Hope Foundation in promoting equity in the accessibility of premium healthcare for all in local communities.

“They furnished us with a state-of-the-art ambulance which is very vital for us to realise this goal. Dr and Mrs Parvin Singh have shown great support to not only the foundation but the nation at large, also engaging our local Ministry of Heath and Child Care on our plight for the unconditional entrée of linctus and well being services to all,” the First Lady said.