Owando Humanitarian Pharmacy Project

Establishment of an easily accessible and well-supplied pharmacy in Owando of the Republic of the Congo -Brazzaville

In Owando, there is a poorly organized pharmaceutical structure that prevents people from acquiring the medications they desperately need. The lack of access to a suitable pharmacy causes people in Owando seek out risky medications from street vendors.

The International Committee for the Promotion of Investment, Valorisation, Innovation and Employment (CIPIVIE) wants to solve this problem by establishing and supplying a modern pharmacy in an accessible location for those in rural Owando and the surrounding villages.

The objective of this humanitarian project is to ensure that the people of Owando benefit from a more robust pharmaceutical system which would save many lives over time. Following the completion of the project, certain local projects will be invested in that are beneficial to the community of Owando and surrounding areas.

These additional projects are the promotion of youth entrepreneurship in rural areas, the training of young mothers in essential trades, agriculture and the breeding of animals, and microfinancing and microediting under the LISSOUNGUI project.

The monitoring and evaluation of the pharmacy project shall be carried out by the project manager and the executive secretary. Reports will be produced at the end of each year. Should CIPIVIE receive the additional funds needed for the project, it will supply a renovated pharmacy in Owando with new pharmaceuticals and computer equipment and the safe access of medicine for people in Owando would drastically increase.

Background on Owando and the Congo:

The Congo is divided into two countries. There is the much larger Democratic Republic of the Congo and the smaller Republic of the Congo. Owando is a remote town in the Republic of Congo-Brazzaville, near the Kouyou river. Many of the people in Owando live in poverty and as far 426 Km or 265 miles (the road distance is 510 Km or 316 miles) from well-equipped medical facilities in the capital city of Brazzaville. The nearest pharmacy to Owando is located in Oyo. This pharmacy is 68 miles away by road, causing the residents of Owando to incur risks by traveling so far.

The reasons for the terrible poverty in Owando and the Republic of the Congo in general are many. However, the 1997 civil war in the Republic of the Congo-Brazzaville, which continued up until 1999, directly devastated the medical, physical therapy, and pharmacy facilities in Owando through military damage. This civil war began for multiple reasons; however, the former imperialist ventures of France in the Congo led to much strife in the Congo when it gained its independence from France in 1960. This caused internal political conflicts and ethnic tensions that helped to cause the civil war in 1997. The civil war resulted in the loss of as many as 25,000 lives, the destruction of property, and an extreme displacement of people in the Republic of the Congo-Brazzaville.

The terrible impact of the civil war is still strongly felt by the people of Owando. Due to the extensive difficulty that they face in acquiring pharmaceuticals, these people will seek out drugs being sold on the street. These drugs are often very dangerous, placing the people that use them at great personal risk. It is the limited access to a suitable pharmacy with medications that poses a significant public health risk to the people of Owando. If this problem is not properly addressed, people from Owando will continue to struggle to access safe medication and instead shall self-medicate, putting their health in danger.

CIPIVIE has a detailed plan to address the pharmacy problem in an effective and efficient manner. This plan includes the restoration of a pharmacy in a more accessible location for people from Owando to reach. CIPIVIE has already managed to partially restore the pharmacy. Now, CIPIVIE just needs further money to finish renovating it and supply the pharmacy depot with medications and computer supplies.

Objectives

The people of Owando face the significant challenge of reaching the nearest pharmacy in Oyo. This pharmacy is 68 miles away by road from Owando making reaching it a significant challenge. Instead, many people from Owando seek out medicine from makeshift pharmacies and street vendors that may be dangerous. The people of Owando reached out for outside help and assistance in solving this serious problem. CIPIVIE has a detailed and efficient plan that will result in the people of Owando having easy access to safe medications. The objectives of this humanitarian project are the supplying of a renovated pharmacy in Owando with needed medications and computer supplies and the opening of the pharmacy. If CIPIVIE receives the additional money needed for this pharmacy project, it will radically improve the lives of people in Owando.

Need and Interest

The need to implement a pharmacy closer to Owando was first expressed by the people of Owando and the surrounding areas. Then, doctors of the health centers in Owando and departmental authorities communicated the severe public health issues and risks that have risen from the lack of a reliable pharmaceutical system in Owando. With multiple groups of people in Owando highly interested in the completion of the project and the early preparation of the building that will become the pharmacy, CIPIVIE expects that the new pharmacy will be widely utilized in Owando following its completion.

Methods

CIPIVIE will ensure the long-term success of the project by marketing the pharmacy products at lower costs, helping to create and supply pharmacy relays in remote areas, and promoting health campaigns such as immunization campaigns, preventative medicine, and empowering health promoters in Owando and nearby areas. Multiple resources will be available to guarantee that the project is completed efficiently. Material resources such as medications and computer equipment shall be supplied from a building that was rehabilitated by CIPIVIE in 2017. Human resources are on hand as well to carry out the project. A pharmacy technician accompanied by a team of public health officers and retired physicians as well as trainee pharmacists from the Owando Paramedic School are available. Additionally, financial resources are expected from sister NGOs, foundations, and companies and organizations willing to accompany and support the project.

Expected Outcomes

When the project is completed and the pharmacy is opened, there are certain results that CIPIVIE expects to see such as: the pharmacy be supplied with safe medicine; at least 95% of the rural population sources low-cost medicine; at least 85% of the population leave the extensive practices of makeshift pharmacies; at least 75% of the enclave villages and agglomerations access primary health care and are provided with medicine. These expected results were determined by health workers at CIPIVIE conducting a statistical study .

Evaluation and Monitoring

The strong management and organization of the project is essential to its successful completion and long-term implementation. The monitoring and evalulation of project activities shall be completed by the project manager and the executive secretary. Two evaluations will be made availble. One at the beginning and one at the end of the project by the Owando team and the CIPIVIE team. Narrative and financial reports will be produced at the end of each year by Owando’s executing agency and the Owando accounting department will ensure the proper management of funds for the pharmacy project.