In 2016, Heiner Ophardt called together a group of OPHARDT hygiene employees to found RESPONSIBILITY e.V.. It is a registered charitable organization, with the goal of providing life-saving medical tools and hygiene equipment to communities around the world, where they are needed most.
The club RESPONSIBILITY e.V. assumes social responsibility and actively contributes to improving people’s health and quality of life. RESPONSIBILITY aims to support institutions such as hospitals, nursing homes, and schools, especially in economically underdeveloped countries, in promoting hygiene standards and improving infection prevention.
Successes to date
In December 2017 the first project of the association was successfully completed. A generous fundraising campaign raised $20,000 USD for a fully equipped ambulance for the General Trias Medicare Hospital located on the outskirts of Manila. Until then, residents in the area were only able to walk or cycle to the hospital, or be taken there by relatives. Too often, however, these options were unavailable and the patients had no way of getting to the doctors.
Following the successful completion of the inaugural project, the Club’s second project centred on supporting healthcare workers at the Matyazo Hospital in Tanzania to improve the quality of surgical procedures and help save lives by donating a surgical lamp for the hospital’s operating room.
Through donations from employees and fundraising activities held throughout the year, the RESPONSIBILITY Club was able to successfully raise the $4,800 USD necessary to purchase the surgical lamp.
The Club’s third and current project aims to improve the living conditions of children and their care takers at the Kandyaa Child Protection Centre in Togo.
The Kandyaa Child Protection Centre in Togo
The Kandyaa (Protector) Child Protection Centre in Sokodé, Togo is one of few such institutions in the country. The children at Kandyaa are victims of brutal violence, exploitation, child trafficking, social exclusion and gross neglect. Many of them have been abused, ostracized and expelled as so-called witch children. Recognized by the state, children in these emergency situations are able to find temporary shelter, protection, and psychosocial care at this institution. Where possible, children within the centre’s care are prepared for family and social reintegration.
To supply the centre with basic food stuffs, Kandyaa has its own farm only 8 km from the institution. At the farm, chickens, rabbits, and sheep are kept, and fruits and vegetables, such as corn, beans, yams, and peanuts are cultivated. In recent months, the farm has developed into a protective environment for agricultural education of older children (14 years and older). With this growth in services, the current simple latrine and small washroom is no longer sufficient.
With your donation, the Club will fund the installation of a new, gender-separated sanitary facility to improve hygiene standards at the child protection centre.
Click here to learn more about RESPONSIBILITY e.V.
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