SPEECH ON THE OFFICIAL INAUGURAL CEREMONY OF THE GMC HOSPITAL Malawi

Salutations:

The Guest of Honor, Principal Secretary for Health, Mr. Chris Kang’ombe;
The President of GMC Hospital, Mr. Thumbay Moideen;
On behalf of The Chief Executive, Blantyre City Assembly, Mr. Robert Kawiya;
The District Health Officer for Blantyre, Dr. G. Chatsika;
The Group Medical Director of GMC, Mr. Marwin Singh GMC delegation;
Board of directors of the SHIFA Hospital;
The General Manager for SHIFA Hospital, Brother Hanif Lambat;
Distinguished invited guest, GMC doctors, ladies and gentlemen,

Guest of Honor, I am greatly honored to stand before you Sir, on behalf of the SHIFA Board of directors and indeed on my own behalf, to earnestly express my heartfelt gratitude and appreciation to Allah who has granted us this great opportunity and allowed us to gather here to witness the effort and achievement, that can only be described as a ‘dream come true.’

This dream has come about to its fullest culmination after four years of hard work, determination, perseverance and focus on achieving this noble goal. It has taken the toll of a substantial investment from 8 local successful businessmen whose aim and objective has been to pay back to the community and country at large that they have lived in by offering the best health care that this country will have ever seen. Shifa and its directors have only one objective and that is to serve.

This venture has been initiated based on the necessity to avoid travelling abroad for first class health and medical care and in the process securing the much needed Forex.

This project is a stepping stone to a FORTHCOMING greater project of health and medical service IN MALAWI, which will also PROVIDE for neighboring countries generate LOCAL AND FOREIGN income; AS WELL AS create further jobs.

Our guest of Honor, the efforts of Shifa also coincide with the Malawi government under the dynamic leadership of Dr. Bingu wa Mutharika, within its priorities falling within the Malawi Growth Development Strategies (MGDS), has emphasized the need to improving the well-being of the people of Malawi by ensuring access to quality health care services. SHIFA Board of directors and indeed the GMC Team, applaud the government for putting its priorities within the various development programs which are in line with the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Guest of Honor, in 1948, the world Health Organization (WHO) defined health as a “state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease.” SHIFA Board of Directors, shareholders and other partners are mindful of the importance of addressing the basic social needs from grass-root level in order to ensure improved factors that determine good health such as food security, good education and quality health care service deliveries. SHIFA fully commits itself to complementing government effort of reducing the maternal and child mortality rate and furthermore, control the spread of preventable diseases such as HIV and AIDS, Malaria and many more.

Our guest of Honor, I am overjoyed indeed, that with unprecedented support and cooperation, through professional guidance and recommendations from the government of Malawi through Ministry of Health and Population, the Medical Council of Malawi and other partners, we are all here today to witness this vibrant and historical inauguration of this ultra modern GMC Hospital. We wish to thank you most profoundly for your support throughout the commissioning of this project.

Let me also thank the GMC and in particular Mr. Thumbay Moideen for the technical support provided at the time SHIFA Project needed it most.

To my fellow Board of Directors, I can only say let us not relax as this is only the beginning of our long journey. I wish to congratulate each one of you for the kind support, love, tolerance and encouragement that you selflessly gave each through and through.

Last but not least, allow me the Guest of Honor, to thank everyone who encouraged us in one way or the other and contributed towards the realization of this project. To you all I say thank you so much.

I would be failing my duty, Guest of Honor, if I did not recognize the untiring effort of one Hanif Lambat, who worked tirelessly with his time and energy day and night to monitor and supervise all the works whose fruits we all see today. I sincerely thank him.

As chairman of the SHIFA Project I am really proud and feel greatly honored that as a team we have proven that once determination is there, and the will to achieve is embedded in the soul, everything is possible. And by the grace of the Almighty we will continue to do more for the benefit of all Malawians.

The Guest of Honor, The President of GMC, all distinguished invited guests, GMC doctors, fellow board members, I thank you for your coming and may Allah bless you all.