UNFPA today handed over an ambulance to the Yirgacheffe Primary Hospital in the Gedeo Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region (SNNPR). The ambulance was purchased with the generous funding of the Embassy of Japan as part of the “Addressing Sexual and Reproductive Health and Gender Based Violence (GBV) Services among people affected by drought and displaced by conflict in selected Districts in Oromia and SNNP regions” project which was implemented over a period of 12 months.

The project was undertaken in selected hotspot woredas in the Gedeo Zone in SNNPR and the West Guji Zone in Oromia Region respectively. Accordingly, the project was implemented in Gedeb and Yirgachefe woredas in SNNPR. It strived to create access to women and girls among drought affected districts and conflict induced internally displaced persons and returnees to lifesaving emergency reproductive health and GBV prevention and response services.

The interventions of the project targeted a total of more than 700 thousand people affected by drought and conflict which includes vulnerable women and girls of reproductive age, pregnant women being the primary target groups.

The project contributed on supporting and strengthening sexual and reproductive health services as well as preventing and responding to gender based violence to save the lives of emergency affected populations in selected project sites in Gedeo and West Guji zones.   

Moreover, through the creation of awareness and provision of dignity kits the project improved the mobility of women and girls to access basic social services including humanitarian aid. This support was also critical in preserving dignity, self-esteem, confidence and protection and is a core aspect of every humanitarian response.

The ambulance which UNFPA donated today in the presence of high officials of SNNPR is expected to strengthen the referral linkages in addressing obstetric complications and other critical cases.