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Partnership launches wellness centre in East Africa
9 April 2009
Transport workers are to benefit from a brand new wellness centre in Kenya thanks to an innovative partnership.
Officially launched on 26 March, the Mombasa centre is an initiative of the North Star Foundation, which consists of core partners, the ITF, Dutch global delivery firm TNT, the World Food Program and UNAIDS. Key stakeholders – from government representatives and trade unions to employers’ associations and transport companies – joined forces to set up the centre in Mombasa’s port. Truckers, dockers and other workers regularly use the port, along with community members.
As with all North Star wellness centres – there are eight others in seven countries across southern Africa – the Mombasa facility takes the form of an old shipping container for maximum sustainability and offers transport workers free health services. These include counselling and HIV testing, treatment for sexually transmitted infections and condom distribution. An information technology system also links all the centres together to ensure the services they offer are of the highest standard.
The ITF affiliate, the Kenya Long Distance Truck Drivers’ Union, which is among the key stakeholders, played a pivotal role in the planning stages of the centre. Its members were also trained as peer educators who will work in the centre. Meanwhile, the Kenyan health ministry has provided two full-time staff and funded the provision of drugs.
Dr Syed Asif Altaf, ITF HIV coordinator said: “To have an effective response in the workplace, it is crucial to work in collaboration with employers, management and other stakeholders. This kind of partnership approach helps our members in their fight against HIV/AIDS. These centres also give unions the opportunity to reach out to unorganised workers.”
Ten more centres will be established in southern Africa over the next two years.
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