Peacekeepers day marked by Juba hospital renovation

20 Jul 2009

Peacekeepers day marked by Juba hospital renovation

UNMIS marked the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers by kicking off the renovation of the children's hospital in Juba on 29 May, and celebrated the occasion elsewhere with marches and football games across Sudan.

UNMIS marked the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers by kicking off the renovation of the children's hospital in Juba on 29 May, and celebrated the occasion elsewhere with marches and football games across Sudan.

As part of the celebrations for this year's peacekeepers day under the theme of 'Women in Peacekeeping: the Power to Empower,' UNMIS unveiled a project to rehabilitate the outpatient wing of the Al Shaba Children's Hospital with funds drawn from the Quick Impact Projects programme.

Constructed during Sudan's long civil war, the hospital's outpatient wing was never completed and has been steadily deteriorating for more than six years. On the day of the renovation's launch, doctors from the Bangladesh Medical Unit offered free medical check-ups to women and children from the Juba Orphanage and Confident Children in Conflict, a local non-governmental organization.

"Peace building is a process, I am happy that the Sudanese are working hard for building their own peace in Sudan," said UNMIS Sector I Head of Office Winnie Babihuga at the ceremony that was attended by the Central Equatoria State Minister of Health among others.

Ms. Babihuga thanked the governments of Central, Eastern and Western Equatoria states for their support in promoting peace in the region and read out a message from the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

"These brave men and women have shown tremendous dedication, making a tangible difference in the lives of many," stated the Secretary-General's message in a salute to the 110,000 peacekeepers who serve in 20 missions worldwide.

In the Western Bahr el Ghazal state capital of Wau, Sector II Commander Col. John Warioba paid tribute to UN peacekeepers as well as to those people who have dedicated themselves to the cause of world peace and security. "Anyone who works for peace deserves recognition for his or her marvelous cause," he said.

Led by a local police band, UNMIS peacekeepers and another 500 people took part in a three-kilometre march in Wau. Peacekeepers in the Blue Nile state capital of Ed Damazin marked the occasion with a formal flag-hoisting ceremony and a football match between the UNMIS Sector V football team and the Al Wifag Football Club.