Japanese Ambassador Inaugurates the Turkman Neighborhood Health Center Following Its Full Rehabilitation by UN Women
Date:
Irbid, Jordan – September 27, 2016: Held under the esteemed patronage of the Ministry of Health and at the presence of His Excellency Mr. Shunichi Sakurai, the Ambassador of Japan to Jordan, UN Women inaugurated the rehabilitated Turkman Neighborhood Health Center in the northern city of Irbid. Within the framework of the social cohesion and women’s empowerment program, implemented by UN Women and generously funded by the Government of Japan, the health center saw a complete renovation of its premises and equipment in order to enhance its capacity to provide quality services to both the Governorates of Zarqa and Irbid.
The inauguration of the health center falls under the objectives of the Social Cohesion and Women Empowerment Program, which aims to improve access to basic services in order to fulfill the needs of both Jordanian and Syrian refugees living in host communities in the Governorates of Irbid and Zarqa. Rehabilitation work undertook in the center included an overhaul of its infrastructure including painting and maintenance - as well as the purchase of up-to-date medical equipment, with a specific focus on those tools related to provide assistance to women and children, the emergency room and the dentistry. The Turkman Health Care Center was also equipped with medical beds, offices and air conditioning units, in addition to seating for the waiting rooms, water filter units and curtains - all of which greatly contributed to create an enabling environment in the health center.
During its opening remarks, H.E. Ambassador Sakurai affirmed, "We believe it is essential for a vibrant and growing society to create an environment where women can demonstrate their power to the fullest extent. Toward the society in which all women shine, Japan will continue to strongly promote its assistance".
On this occasion, Dr. Mohammad Tarawneh - Director of the Planning Unit at the Ministry of Health, expressed his appreciation for the renovation of the structure, which will offer a considerable improvement in the quality of medical services provided to patients in the center. He also emphasized that project will also ease the pressure on the medical staff working it the center, expressing his appreciation for the generous support provided by the Japanese government to the Turkman neighborhood health center through UN Women.
Founded in 1979, the Center is serving nearly 8,479 Jordanian families in the Governorate of Irbid as well as Syrian refugees. Only in the month of June, a peak of 3,800 families received assistance in the Center.
The UN Women Jordan Representative, Mr. Ziad Sheikh affirmed that the Social Cohesion and Women Empowerment Program aims increase the access to basic social services equitably and safely for both Jordanians and Syrian refugees. He also highlighted the importance of the cooperation between the United Nations and local governmental service providers who directly support local communities in order to alleviate the immense pressure currently put on basic services in Jordanian host communities - while strengthening efforts on improving the quality of those services.
In the past years, the Turkman Health Center experienced a large increase in the number of patients seeking medical assistance. As such, its renovation, refurbishment and maintenance has been prioritized during the implementation of the Social Cohesion and Women Empowerment Program.
UN Women, in cooperation with the Government of Jordan and with the generous support of the Government of Japan, launched the Social Cohesion and Women Empowerment Program Through Increased Access to Services in the Governorates of Zarqa and Irbid at the beginning of 2016, with the overall objective of supporting better access to basic public services for more than 1000 men and women in the two targeted governorates. As such, the delivery of equal social services has been identified as entry point in order to alleviate the social pressures on Jordanian host communities.