Expanding a health clinic to better serve remote communities

Ubuntu Village of Life, the community-based organization contributing to the well-being and opportunities of Burundians in the Mugamba Commune.

Burundi is one of the poorest and most neglected countries in the world and today 80% or the population lives on under $1 a day. Hunger and poverty are exacerbated by a lack of quality medical care, most acutely felt by Burundian women and children.

Located in the province of Bururi, the Mugamba Commune is a rural area, home to over 60,000 people. Ubuntu Village of Life, a community-based organization, operates a health clinic that provides a wide range of services to the community - general medicine, ophthalmology, minor surgery, pediatrics, maternal health, etc. It is the only pharmacy in the region, and the only clinic in Mugamba that has lab services, an ambulance, and highly qualified health care personnel.

In November 2020, Alexis Nizigiyimana - founder of Ubuntu - opened the Ubuntu Medical Clinic in collaboration with the US Embassy, USAID, local leaders and community members. In the year following its opening, the clinic had served over 5000 people. This number is expected to more than double in the year following the clinic’s expansion led by MadiroLabs Burundi thanks to additional space, extended medical services and staff training.

In September 2022, the new and improved Ubuntu medical clinic opened its doors to the public.

Ubuntu also operates a vocational training center to address social determinants of health, started a food security program, and partners with PSI Burundi to provide family planning tools and build capacity to improve health care delivery.

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