First Lady Jeannette Kagame and Morocco’s Princess Lalla Asmaa officially opened the Kanombe Ear Care Centre at Rwanda Military Referral and Teaching Hospital, where ear conditions will be diagnosed and treated.
In a report published on Monday, the Rwanda Broadcasting Agency described the facility as a joint initiative between the governments of Rwanda and Morocco aimed at expanding access to specialised hearing care.
The centre began by treating about 50 children within one week. A further 100 children received hearing aids.
Princess Lalla Asmaa, who chairs the Lalla Asmaa Foundation, has led programmes supporting deaf and hard-of-hearing children through medical care, rehabilitation and education.
Her foundation runs the Together, We Hear Each Other Better programme, which extends hearing treatment and rehabilitation support to children in different countries.
The foundation’s NASMAA programme has provided cochlear implants to 950 Moroccan children since its launch in 2022.
Another 368 children from 22 countries have received implants through its international programme.
In Rwanda, the Rwanda Biomedical Centre has been training teachers to recognise hearing difficulties among children at an early stage.
Under the Winsiga Ndumva programme, 1,017 nursery and primary school teachers in nine districts received the training.
The country has also established five district-level centres for ear and hearing care, while referral hospitals have received diagnostic equipment to examine and manage hearing conditions.
The newly inaugurated centre adds treatment capacity at Rwanda Military Referral and Teaching Hospital.
Elie GATETE
RADIOTV10