Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:21 pm on 9 November 2021.
Thank you very much, Altaf Hussain, and thank you for your support of the Wales and Africa programme. What is very clear is that this is a 15-year programme—I remember it being launched in this Chamber by former First Minister Rhodri Morgan—and it is a programme that has been hugely successful in terms of its impact. We have a very small Wales and Africa team in the Welsh Government to take this forward, but it has formed part of the international strategy, which was published in 2020 before you joined us. Many of the new Members will know that we have an international strategy with action plans, and the Wales and Africa programme is one of the action plans.
Certainly, I can provide more information on the total spend over the last 15 years.FootnoteLink But I think you've given me the opportunity to again remind our Members and to inform you of the impact of some of the funding that we have given, particularly in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. The three large grants that we awarded through the extra £1 million allocated to the Wales and Africa programme in March of this year included United Purpose from Cardiff. That was a £600,000 grant for the rapid emergency response in Nigeria, the Gambia, Senegal and Guinea; it reached 4.4 million people. And also, Teams4U in Wrexham is a very important partnership; Members in north Wales will be aware of this. The charity provided £125,000 grant funding for improving sanitation, menstrual provision and health facilities and schools in Uganda in response to COVID-19—hot running water plumbed directly into operating theatres, two 24/7 health centres seeing up to 300 patients daily, covering all aspects of community healthcare, including HIV testing and treatment, TB treatment, immunisation, family planning, general care, antenatal and postnatal care. This is a partnership between the people of Wrexham and Uganda, with Teams4U. And, you know, the feedback has been that healthcare workers, particularly women and girls, feel a lot safer using these facilities than the old ones, which were often outside and in unlit areas.
I just want to say that this is working with Governments as well as local projects. So, the Mbale Regional Referral Hospital I mentioned—I will say that when we were able to provide support for the provision of oxygen, the new oxygen plant, which is being planned by the Ministry of Health in Uganda, will be complemented by our contribution. And also the fact that the impact of the investments that we've made have meant that people have actually said—and it's good to have a quote from a beneficiary of the water, sanitation and hygiene project—'I used to fear going to the latrine on my night shift as I would have to move out of the ward, and it was very dark outside. Now, I can use the inside toilet and I'm safe and it does not take me away from the patients.' That's Lydia, from Mukongoro health centre. So, this is the impact that our funding and our support for Wales and Africa makes.