INTERNATIONAL  RELIEF & DEVELOPMENT   |  1621 NORTH KENT STREET, 4TH FLOOR  |  ARLINGTON, VA 22209 

T  703.248.0161   |  F 703.248.0194   |  WWW.IRD.ORG 

 

International Relief and Development Awarded USAID‐Funded Ethiopia Health Infrastructure Program

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  OCTOBER 12, 2011  CONTACT: MELISSA PRICE 571‐366‐1596 PRESS@IRD‐DC.ORG 

ARLINGTON, VA – International Relief and Development (IRD) was recently awarded the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) funded Ethiopia Health Infrastructure Program (EHIP). Valued at $60 million over five years, the program will help improve access to health care for the estimated 1.2 million Ethiopians living with HIV/AIDS. Ethiopia’s 74 million people have among the lowest per capita access to health facilities in the world. Through EHIP, IRD will create highly visible improvements to the Ethiopian health sector in five regions that experience high HIV prevalence. The program will address public health infrastructure, with a focus on the following activities:

construction of sustainable and context-appropriate new health centers and ancillary infrastructure, such as warehousing facilities;

enhancement of existing infrastructure to preserve and protect prior investments;

participatory planning that incorporates the needs and constraints of communities, gender issues, and the environment; and,

incentives for communities to make use of the health facilities. Through collaboration with local construction firms, IRD will oversee the construction of approximately 85 government-standard health centers and nine regional warehouses and will renovate approximately 300 health centers with high antiretroviral therapy (ART) patient loads. The objective is to build safe, high-quality buildings for the long term. Visit www.ird.org for more information on IRD’s work around the world. To read first-hand accounts from our staff on the ground, you can visit our blog, IRD Voices. You can also stay up-to-date on IRD’s latest news by following us on Facebook, Twitter (@ird_voices), Flickr, or YouTube. IRD is a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization responsible for implementing relief, stabilization, and development programs worldwide. IRD’s mission is to reduce the suffering of the world’s most vulnerable groups and provide the tools and resources needed to increase their self-sufficiency. Specializing in meeting the needs of communities emerging from conflict or natural disaster, IRD partners with donors, local organizations, and many others to deliver sustainable services in agriculture, governance, health, and infrastructure. For more information, visit IRD.org.

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INTERNATIONAL  RELIEF & DEVELOPMENT   |  1621 NORTH KENT STREET, 4TH FLOOR  |  ARLINGTON, VA 22209 

T  703.248.0161   |  F 703.248.0194   |  WWW.IRD.ORG