ElectricAid Project of the Month

Rural Cavan, the Dalai Lama and the Gobi Desert

Jampa ling is a Tibetan Buddhist Centre in rural Co. Cavan, where Irish followers of the Dalai Lama have been reaching out to the people of Tibet and Mongolia. Jampa Ling has been working in Mongolia for just under 10 years and has identified community/rural development, basic education and health as three key target areas needing support.

Ondershill is 450km from Ulaanbaater in the Gobi Desert. There is no employment for the inhabitants and the people are very poor. The climate varies in the extreme, reaching temperatures of up to +40°C in the summer and -40°C in the winter.

In late 2005, ElectricAid received an application from Jampa Ling asking us to fund the extension to the small maternity section in the hospital in Ondershill. The hospital, run by a dedicated team of five women, is small, clean and has minimal equipment. The entire hospital had a total of eight beds, with the tiny maternity unit having only two beds, despite the fact it serves a vast hinterland. There is not enough space to care for the number of expectant mothers and the hospital does not have oxygen equipment. The nearest town with alternative hospital facilities is 180kms away over rough tracks.

The project provides four extra beds and equipment, so that expectant mothers and mothers with babies, in impoverished circumstances, can access better pre- and post-natal care. The extended maternity unit provides agreeable conditions all year round, which will be warm, safe, dry and properly equipped.

In January 2006, ElectricAid approved the funding of €4,250 for this worthwhile project. The extension was built in time for winter by local labour. It opened in September 2006 on time and within budget.

There are two rooms, each with two beds, a small kitchen area and a reception area. It is now possible for women giving birth to be separated from the rest of the hospital, reducing the risk of infection.

Frank Conway of Jampa Ling said "The help and support which comes from a very long way away is felt deeply by the community and is very gratefully received."

ElectricAid Monthly Draw Winner

ElectricAid's lucky winner of the month is Darren Healy, ESB Networks Projects, Enniscorthy. The prize for this month is a €500 Shopping Voucher that was kindly sponsored by Group HR & Corporate Affairs Directorate.

ElectricAid