The First Lady of Rwanda Mrs. Jeannette Kagame on Monday joined fellow African first ladies in an event for raising funds for a number of issues affecting the continent’s development. The event happened on the sidelines of the ongoing United Nations General Assembly that is taking place in New York, United States of America. The event was organised by the Organisation of African first ladies for Development (OAFLAD), is an advocacy organisation where First Ladies of Africa seek to leverage their unique position to advocate for policies that make health services accessible and laws that boost women and youth empowerment. OAFLAD brings together the continent’s First Ladies with the objective to be a united voice for Africa’s most susceptible citizens; women and children living, among other purposes. Monday’s event was organised in partnership with the Business Council for International Understanding (BCIU), and it was aimed at mobilising the private sector to support OAFLADs new strategic direction, for a developed Africa. The strategic direction focuses on fighting HIV and AIDS, non-communicable diseases (NCDs), improving reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health (RMNCH), gender equality, women and youth empowerment, universal health coverage (UHC), social security and protection including persons with disabilities, and institutional capacity strengthening. According to information from OAFLAD, the United Nations General Assembly is looked at as an opportunity for the first ladies to have resource mobilization to support their new strategic vision since it is a time where regional and international donor organizations gather in one city for a number of multilateral and bilateral meetings. Formed in 2002, OAFLAD has evolved to become an institution that is able to offer a continent-wide leadership in terms of advocacy in the areas of HIV and a broad range of maternal and child health intervention. OAFLAD’s new direction necessitates the use of innovative methods to communicate the new face of the organization to the public, partners and potential partners. Internally, the general assembly of OAFLAD has acknowledged that there is a need to develop innovative approaches to raise funds for the in-country activities it foresees to undertake in the coming years. editor@newtimesrwanda.com
