By Frankie Ifop
Six (6) communities in Akamkpa and Akpabuyo local government areas of Cross River State have benefited from the free medical outreach being carried out by Lafarge Africa in partnership with Mediatrix Development Foundation (MDF), with support from the Cross River State Ministry of Health and Primary Health Care Development Agency.
The 6 communities are Mfamosing, Mbobui, Akwa Ikot Effanga, Akansoko, Ekong Anaku and Abiati and the outreach is to run for 12 days – from May 11-23, 2021 respectfully.
Speaking during the flagging off of the exercise at the Mfamosing Health Care Centre upgraded by Lafarge Africa in Akamkpa local government area, Mrs Folasade Ambrose, Director Communications, Public Affairs and Sustainable Development, Lafarge Africa Plc said the free medical outreach is in line with the company’s objectives to provide health care and safety to its host communities.
Ambrose who was ably represented by Mr Inyang Bassey, Communications and Public Affairs Manager in-charge of Lafarge Operations within the South-East region said Lafarge has been embarking on such outreach since 2002 when it was United Cement (UNICEM).
“This is just in line with our Corporate Social Responsibility where we look at health and safety as one of our pillars. We believe that health is wealth. So, what we are doing here today is actually taking healthcare services to the community. That’s why we call it medical outreach.
“This is done in partnership with Mediatrix Foundation, which is an NGO also responsible for managing healthcare activities within the health sector. In addition, we can see that we have equally partnered with Cross River State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, which is also under the supervision of the State Ministry of Health”, he said.
Continuing, Bassey said “Lafarge as a company came into limelight in Cross River State in 2015, and that being the issue before now, I’m sure we all know that we used to have a company that’s call UNICEM. So right from 2002 when UNICEM started operation in Cross River State, we have been embarking on copious, various healthcare activities across our communities. So if you are asking me for the number of years, I can tell you it’s far more than 15 years since the existence of UNICEM and now Lafarge that we have been embarking on life interventions like this.
“This exercise is like giving back to the community. Whether we like it or not every business, everything entity, every brand operating, even banks do what we call Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Then talkless of us in the mining industry. Let me also blow your mind that by the Act that establishes mining operation, there’s what they call community development agreement, which is an agreement established by the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development that actually ensure that the community and the company work hand in hand. So this is not an attempt or factor to pacify the community, but a way of ensuring that the community understands the fact that we are here to support each other. It’s a mutually benefit relationship. So we are doing this as a way of giving back to the community, and to ensure that when you are engaging with stakeholders they must be healthy and sound to have constructive discussion and relationship. So if the health of the people is not paramount to you as a business then it means that the interest of the people to live healthy is not part of what you are advocating. So, we are advocating for a healthy workforce and also the healthy well-being of our stakeholders which this community is also part of it”, he added.
Speaking after declaring the outreach opened, Dr Janet Ekpenyong, Director General, Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency said impactful interventions from organisations like Lafarge is what the state needs to fight toe-to-toe with the pandemic that already affecting the world.
“As part of our strategy to see how we can take services very close to people in the community, especially this period we are fighting against the pandemic, it calls for very high impact intervention that would at least try to bridge some of the gaps that may have existed in terms of availability of healthcare services as well as utilisation of those services; and that’s why every now and then we try to bring in outreaches and her Excellency, Dr Linda Ayade who is very concerned about the health of our citizens in collaboration with Lafarge and the Primary Healthcare Agency, decided to carry out this intervention in Mfamosing and other communities to ensure that people of these communities can access quality healthcare services. We know how it’s been, especially in this pandemic like I stated earlier…access and utilisation of available services have been a huge problem and whenever we have such outreach, we use that opportunity to reiterate the importance of coming to a health facility to access healthcare and of course carry out health education and as well as see how we can provide other healthcare services that the people really need.
“So, I’m very pleased with the turnout. People are really taking advantage of this opportunity and I am hoping that at the end of the day we will be able to reach out and help to improve a lot of lives as well”, Ekpenyong said.
She further stated that aside from Lafarge and other organisations who are trying to affect the lives of Cross Riverians, those who are yet to should try as it will go a long way in helping the government and the people.
“It’s very important that any organisation that’s actually in Cross River State should try as much as possible to see how they can affect the lives of people directly. And you will agree with me that when you carry out such outreach or intervention you are actually reaching out to people directly. So I will encourage them to emulate Lafarge as well as what several other organisations are doing. But we want to encourage them that they should try as much as possible to implement things like this that would directly have positive effects on the lives of the community where they are resident. If you are able to improve on the lives of people who may be in the community where you exist you are bound to get more community support to enhance your productivity or whatever you are doing in that community. That would really go a long way to help. So we encourage them to try as much as possible to emulate what Lafarge is doing and see how we can all put our hands together to continue to improve on the health of Cross Riverians.
“His Excellency Senator (Prof.) Ben Ayade is very committed to seeing that Cross River State achieves Universal Health Coverage – that means people having access to quality healthcare services wherever they are. And of course, with such partnership with Lafarge, they have supported the state in the past to even build a health post and even health centres. We are hoping that as many communities as possible will be able to have their own health post because it is expected that every community should have at least a health post. And we are also trying to link up some communities that don’t have for now… Link them up with the nearest health facility. We will always carry out similar outreaches in those communities where healthcare workers actually take the services to them. They are some health intervention such as immunisation, antenatal services and even some ANC services. Healthcare workers will actually take the services close to them. But even at that, His Excellency is really committed to seeing that every community in Cross River State should have a functional health post. And I am certain that with support such as Lafarge, we will definitely achieve that in no time”.
On his part, Mr Jeffrey Adamade, Chief Operating Officer of Mediatrix Development Foundation said they have partnered with Lafarge Africa for over 6 years to carry out free health outreaches in the state like this one.
“What we are doing here today is a partnership that we have had with Lafarge for over 6 years now. Mediatrix is a health partner to Lafarge, implementing health activities in the 6 host communities in Akamkpa and across Akpabuyo local government areas. This is a very important aspect of their CSR and today we are in Mfamosing healthcare centre. It is a facility-based intervention. So members of the community are mobilised to come to the facility to receive various kinds of services. We have eye care services, we have malaria services, we have pre-HIV testing, Hepatitis testing, we are dispensing drugs and we are also doing consultations. As you can see the crowd is building up even though today is the introductory part of the whole 12 days of activities we are going to have with these communities. We have 2 days in each of the 6 communities. We are going to be here tomorrow again, then we now move to another community. But all of the health activities we are going to be having are going to be facility-based. So there’s the aspect where the state government comes into it because we know that most of these persons are supposed to be directly or indirectly affected by the services that are provided by the state government.
“Lafarge being a community-friendly organisation, and also Mediatrix being a community-based NGO – that’s why you have most of the persons in the community coming out in their mass. We have drugs that will go round. We just want to say thank you to Lafarge, thank you to Cross River State Government for providing this platform where we can actually show our expertise as have done over the years”, He said.
Adamade boasted that with the support from Lafarge Africa and the State Government, they can accommodate any amount of persons as long as they come out for the outreach. “Of course, Lafarge is not a small organisation and Lafarge is supporting this project. So we will attend to as many persons that can be mobilised to the facility where we will be carrying out the services. I cannot give you an estimated number, but I can tell you that in previous occasions where we have had this particular activity we reached out to virtually thousands of persons. I know that last year we did not go to the 6 communities, but this year that we will go to the 6 host communities, we are very optimistic that a whole lot of persons would be affected by this.
“Mediatrix Development Foundation is over 8 years old now. We have been partnering with Lafarge for the last 6 years. And Lafarge, even beyond the health outreaches, Lafarge has been partnering with Mediatrix in other interventions like World Aids Day, and many other interventions we have been working with Lafarge. But I think this is a more targeted and streamlined intervention for the host community.
“Everybody should come out and take advantage of this free medical outreach. Out of pocket expenditure, as long as health is concerned, is a big challenge in Nigeria. So when you have it free like this, everybody is encouraged to come out and get the available services”, he added.
Evang (Ntufam) Alphonsus Bassey, a member of the Community Relation Committee (CRC) representing one of the host communities said the free medical outreach came timely as the people are trying to recount their losses in the post-pandemic era.
He said: “The outreach came as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility. It’s part of our planning for the communities to benefit – and we are so grateful to Lafarge because we have a lot of issues we are suffering here and it’s not easy for you to have government attention. This is not the first time they are doing this. In most cases, they do it almost yearly, if not because of the COVID-19 that came. This is another pilot one that has come and we are so happy that they have come to take care of the poor people that cannot access services in the health system easily. We are ever grateful to Lafarge and we pray God should continue to bless Lafarge so that we will continue to benefit more”
The beneficiaries thanked Lafarge Africa and MDF for always putting the people first with its CSR. Anom Emerencia Ndep, a Cameroonian refugee staying in Mfamosing who benefited from the free medical outreach said at first she and her neighbours thought it was a scam as they have been deceived by many who come to aid them but later demand money from them.
“Yesterday morning, I saw a town crier on a motorcycle announcing the free medical outreach, so I decided to come. I had some eye problem, they checked me and gave me glasses in which I can see and read clearly. I was also tested for malaria – I and my baby and they gave us malaria drugs because my baby was having fever on and off and it turns out in the test to be malaria. I did not pay any money for it – everything was given to me free of charge.
“I thank Lafarge, Mediatrix, Cross River State Government and all that helped organised this free medical outreach for recognising us in Mfamosing, especially for people like us. First, I thought it was a scam because people used to come like this and after registration, they will ask us to pay N30,000 – but I decided to come and try my luck and luckily for me this time, everything was free. I will go and tell others to come and benefit too”, she said.
Various health services like Malaria testing and treatment, pre-HIV testing, Hepatitis testing, drug dispensation, consultations and others were being carried out during the free medical outreach.