KICUKIRO - The Rotary Club of Kigali, in partnership with the Rotary Club of Ravensburg-Weingarten in Germany, Monday donated orthopaedic materials worth $20,000 to the Jaipur Limb Project in Kanombe orthopaedic workshop.

The donation that included orthopaedic limbs and other materials used in the manufacture of orthopaedic devices, was coordinated and channeled through the Rotary Club of Kigali and the Rotary Club of Nairobi South and Utumishi, who mediated and transported the consignment.

"With a contribution like that, the Kigali Rotary Club and other rotary clubs from all over the world participate in giving a ray of hope to the victims of the various misfortunes that befell our country,” said Ndoba Mugunga, the president Rotary Club of Kigali.

The Rotary Club of Kigali has been at the forefront in supporting the Kanombe orthopaedic workshop. It rehabilitated the workshop in 1995 from the war ruins at a tune of $60,000 and in 1997, started the Jaipur Limb Project to strengthen the workshop.

According to Dr Murego Charles, the Director of Medical Services in RDF, the Rotary Club of Kigali has been supporting this workshop for a long time, not only in material provision but also in personnel training, as it facilitated the training of personnel in orthopaedic device making, and that they had done a great job.

"It is not the first time they are supporting us. We are really grateful for their support and the successful lobbying they have done for us from other Rotary clubs. They have restored smiles on the faces of many victims,” said Dr. Murego.

The Kanombe orthopaedic workshop is a facility under Kanombe Military Hospital which was established to rehabilitate and enhance the functionality of victims of violence like wars, which led to impairment of mobility.

Most of the beneficiaries of this facility are people who lost their limbs during war. However, its facilitation has extended to civilians who also have similar problems.

The artificial legs, both the imported ones and the ones made at the workshop, have enabled victims live a life close to normal.

Gashaija Kamana, who lost both legs during war, revealed that when he puts on these legs, he can move and carry out his small scale business.

This is the third time the Kanombe orthopedic workshop is receiving such a donation, courtesy of the Rotary Club of Kigali and another consignment is coming within a few months.

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