17 August 2006
U.S. Sports Star Returns to Congo To Open Hospital
Basketball player Dikembe Mutombo teaches the game and improves health care
New York -- American basketball star Dikembe Mutombo is returning to his hometown of Kinshasa in September to open the Democratic Republic of Congo's first new hospital in more than 40 years, a hospital he helped build.
In 1997, Mutombo decided to use his celebrity, wealth and energy to improve the health conditions in his homeland. The 300-bed Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital and Research Center, named in honor of his late mother, will open on September 2.
The hospital is the result of the athlete's tireless efforts to raise $29 million and set out a vision for a facility that not only will provide desperately needed health care, but also will have a special pediatric wing, surgery suites and a women's center, and train a new generation of doctors for the Congo.
"We are happy such a big step has been taken on the continent. I cannot wait until I get off the plane in Kinshasa and get the opportunity to cut the ribbon for opening the new hospital," Mutombo said at a press conference August 16 in New York. "Whatever I accomplish, wherever I go, my heart remains there."
The basketball star, who originally went to the United States to study at Georgetown University to become a doctor, has donated more than $15 million to the project, while private donations from other celebrities, average Americans and corporate partnerships have helped offset the cost of construction, equipment and supplies. He also raised half of the money needed to run the hospital for a year and hopes to raise enough to keep it running for the first five years.
Mutombo will be joined on his trip to Africa by other basketball players from the National Basketball Association (NBA). They not only will open the hospital but also will continue a tradition, started in 2001, of conducting sports clinics for boys and girls around the world as part of the NBA's "Basketball Without Borders" program.
Kathleen Behrens, senior vice president of community and player programs for the NBA, said the program "allows us to not only grow and celebrate the game of basketball around the world but also to use the power and celebrity of our game and of our players to deliver important, lifesaving messages to kids about the importance of education, the importance of living an active, healthy and safe lifestyle."
Basketball Without Borders will be conducting sports clinics in South Africa and Botswana from September 6 to September 10. Other 2006 programs were held in Shanghai, China, in June and in Vilnius, Lithuania, in July.
The clinics, Behrens said, provide an opportunity for young people to discover how success in sports can be transformed into the development of life skills, with emphasis on the value of teamwork, respect and leadership.
The program also creates "lasting legacy projects -- reading and learning centers for kids, dorms where kids can live safely and protected from the dangers they face on the street," she said.
Behrens hailed Mutombo as a "great humanitarian for the NBA and the world," adding that he is "personally inspiring for everyone in the United States and hopefully the entire continent of Africa."
The hospital and Mutombo's participation in the Basketball Without Borders program are "not just about the Congo. This is really about Africa at large and ensuring the future health and well-being of the people of Africa," she said.
NBA players, the players’ union and the league itself contributed money for the hospital "because they care," Mutombo said.
Fundraising was "slow at the beginning for the fact that Congo was still undergoing civil unrest and it was tough to raise money," he said. "As we see peace coming in the Congo, that made the things go more smoothly."
Americans are so generous, Mutombo said. "They believe in giving you $10 or $20 that will treat a child, that will give a woman a chance to deliver her baby in a hospital instead of delivering at home," he explained.
Mutombo added that many doctors from the United States and Europe are interested in working at the hospital for short periods -- a week or two or a month. He also wants to lure Congolese doctors who are working elsewhere into returning home.
"Scores of Congolese die each day unnecessarily due to the lack of access to health care and modern medicine," Mutombo said. "This hospital will be equipped with cutting-edge technology, and will go a long way toward diminishing the shortage of doctors and medical experts in Congo."
For further information, see the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation Web site.
