Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA) provided medical equipment to LeDeG Foundation, which has become a symbol in Ethiopia with its efforts for maternal and infant health.
Founded by Dr. Teguest Guerma, who was left to die due to her illness after the difficult birth experience of her mother, who married young, but managed to survive, LeDeG Foundation has become a symbol in the country thanks to the world-renowned efforts of its founder.
TİKA provided LeDeG Maternal and Child Health Center and Midwifery College with a recovery room monitoring device, an oxygen concentrator, an electrolyte analyzer, a vaccine refrigerator, an airway suction device, and a blood gas analyzer.
The delivery ceremony held for the equipment was attended by Mustafa Kemal Basa, Undersecretary of the Turkish Embassy in Addis Ababa; Cengiz Polat, TİKA’s Coordinator in Addis Ababa; Dr. Tilahun Bogela, Acting Director of LeDeG Maternal and Child Health Center and Midwifery College; and healthcare professionals working at the center.
Dr. Tilahun thanked TİKA and the Republic of Türkiye for their assistance. Mustafa Kemal Basa, Undersecretary of the Turkish Embassy in Addis Ababa, stated that they were proud to support such a wonderful institution.
Cengiz Polat, TİKA’s Coordinator in Addis Ababa, noted that TİKA has written incredible stories in different regions for 30 years, and that they were honored to be a part of the amazing story written by Dr. Guerma.
Founded by Dr. Teguest Guerma, a former high-ranking official at the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Director-General of the African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF), in Addis Ababa in 2018 by donating her own pension funds, the Foundation both provides graduate education in midwifery and offers health services to patients in need in the maternal and child health center.
Who Is Teguest Guerma?
Teguest Guerma, the first born of a mother who married young, was one of the children who were left by doctors to die as the condition of both her mother and herself deteriorated.
Once Teguest Guerma and her mother survived the difficult childbirth, Guerma and her siblings attended school and became doctors thanks to her mother’s efforts.
As a well-known figure both in her country and in the world for social responsibility projects, Guerma told the story of her life in the book Let Her Die.
Teguest Guerma, who was awarded the Légion d'honneur, the highest order of merit in France, was also given the award Women of Excellence by the Network of Ethiopian Women's Associations (NEWA) in 2022.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA).
