Programs: Les Centres GHESKIO
Announced:
October 12, 2010
Category:
Facilitating Job Training & Workforce Development
Fund Amount: $908,700 Grant
Disbursed to Date: $908,700
In this video, meet a few of the students at GHESKIO
who are learning new skills and helping rebuild their country.
See more in the GHESKIO Photo Gallery.
When the outbreak of cholera began, the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund responded. We worked with GHESKIO, a Haitian medical research and care center for HIV and tuberculosis patients, to reallocate some of their grant funding towards emergency cholera relief. This included setting up training centers on the fight against cholera; training on prevention and curing cholera for all GHESKIO employees; distribution of clear water kits with purification tablets, rehydration salts, and antibiotics; distributing drinking water; and offering technical support to the Ministry of Health.
The Clinton Bush Haiti Fund’s $908,700 grant to GHESKIO supported the socioeconomic needs of the GHESKIO residents through a multi-faceted approach that included lifesaving activities – including cholera treatment and prevention – and livelihood promotion activities that included basic education, vocational training, and access to microcredit.
Program Update
The 420 men and women enrolled in GHESKIO's 6-month vocational training course have completed their studies. They are now excited to move on and contribute to the rebuilding of their country. The students are entering the workforce with skills in carpentry, electricity, plumbing, welding, tiling, and masonry.
Why We Invested in Les Centres GHESKIO
Our grant to GHESKIO represents our commitment to filling near-term gaps that lay the foundation for longer-term reconstruction, by supporting the medical and social services displaced Haitians need and creating economic opportunity through workforce development and microfinance.
Medical Care
- Rapid response to the cholera outbreak through treatment centers and training sites.
- The provision of healthcare, sanitation, and other basic services to camp residents, including disease screenings, immunizations, orthopedic and rehabilitation services, nutrition programs for children and pregnant women, prenatal care, and activities geared toward awareness against gender-based violence.
- The running of the only tuberculosis testing site for Port-au-Prince and its surroundings.
Transforming Lives and Livelihoods
- Maintained a pre-kindergarten and elementary school that gives 400 children access to education and psycho-social counseling.
- Launched a workforce development program in construction trades and marketable skills for 600 men and women, in partnership with the Salesian order.
- Expanded microcredit services to patients and other eligible camp residents benefitting from GHESKIO's services, particularly targeting the adult female population, and the young entrepreneurs graduating from the GHESKIO vocational school.
About Les Centres GHESKIO
GHESKIO Center in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, was the first institution in the world dedicated to the fight against HIV/AIDS. It has provided continuous medical care in Haiti since 1982 without ever shutting its doors or charging fees. In response to the January 12th earthquake, Les Centres GHESKIO, a Haitian medical research and care center for HIV and tuberculosis patients, accommodated 7,000 people in its site in downtown Port-au-Prince, providing emergency care and assistance. In addition to health programs, GHESKIO focuses on holistic assistance. Their other programs include microfinance loans to small business owners as well as schools which give children access to education and psycho-social counseling.
