The project area is in Ebonyi State in the Southeast of the country. The focus is on reducing maternal and newborn mortality. AMURT works in partnership with communities, government and local organizations to extend primary health and maternal health services to remote neglected areas. As of December 2022, AMURT has helped to open 12 new health centers. Over 25,000 births have been conducted in the AMURT assisted health centers. Four of the health centers have been upgraded to Emegency Obstetric Referral Centers, and over 1,100 cesarean sections have been done. AMURT's Every Life Counts Program goes the extra mile to save lives.. In 2022 over 150 pediatric surgeries and over 120 obstetric emergency services were sponsored along with newborn complications, severe malnutrition and assistance to widows and orphans with disabilities or with chronic conditions. AMURT's community development program includes:
AMURT NIGERIA and COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT WORK
The priority of the AMURT projects in Nigeria is long term community development
Along with the life saving charitable activities to directly save lives, we currently run the following development programs:
STRENGTHENING PRIMARY HEALTHCARE AT THE FACILITY LEVEL - the AMURT assisted health centers have started to pay their own staff. Currently over 90 health center employees, including all support staff and over 50 nurses/health workers, are paid by the health centers. This has been made possible by boosting community participation, close monitoring and tight financial management to promote financial autonomy and self reliance. The goal is the long term sustainability of the projects. WATER PROJECTS - AMURT has taken potable water to over 235 rural villages and trained and equipped a WATER SANITATION & HYGIENE COMMITTEE (WASHCOM) in each village to maintain the borehole, protect the village water sources,and promote community sanitation and hygiene. ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT - In the culture in southeast Nigeria, the cultural traditions leave widows at a disadvantage. The economic empowerment project supports widows, and other women who are the sole breadwinners of their families, to start a business to support themselves and thier children. The model is a COOPERATIVELY MANAGED REVOLVING CREDIT SCHEME, with over 600 members spread through nine cooperative groups. SCHOLARSHIPS FOR CAPACITY BUILDING IN HEALTH - To strengthen the communities capacity to manage their own primary health care, and at the same time offer youth the opportunity for education and job, AMURT has been running a scholarship program, where the most talented and dedicated youth can get education to become CHEW (Community Health Extension Workers). The CHEWS make up the backbone of Nigeria's primary health service, and takes three years to get certificate. AMURT has given 47 such scholarships, and those who have graduated have returned to their communities to serve in the health centers. ADOLESCENT SEXUAL and REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH - Teenage pregnancy rates remain high in the rural villages. AMURT's program work on three levels: SCHOOL LEVEL: Training of peer educators in Secondary Schools. VILLAGE LEVEL: Through Youth Health Champions, trained every month to take health messages and activities to adolescents in the villages. and HEALTH CENTER - each health center host a First Time Mother's club where teenage mothers, and pregnant teenagers, benefit from a variety of supportive programs and activities.
