US envoy says doors open for support
United States Ambassador Virginia Palmer has said her office is committed to supporting development projects that will benefit communities and the nation as a whole.
The envoy said this on Monday in Blantyre when she presided over the official opening of Jacaranda Physiotherapy Community Clinic at Chigumula in the city.
She said doors are open to the people who seek financial support for infrastructure that will develop the country.
cutting the ribbon
“Applications are open now and they are available online; you can call the embassy and we can send you some for projects across the country.
“We funded this one [Jacaranda Physiotherapy Clinic] because we were confident that it will get built, the money will be used well and the community was willing to make a contribution.
“So, all over the county if you want a girl’s hostel and have made the bricks, but can’t afford the roof and windows, then you can apply and the embassy can help with that,” said Palmer.
After opening the clinic, the US Ambassador visited Jacaranda School for Orphans where she commended the founder Marie da Silva for the initiative to help the poor in her community by offering high educational standards.
“Jacaranda School is very impressive. I wish every school I visited looked like this. They have libraries, they have vocational training programmes and children are not crowded. It’s a wonderful school environment,” Palmer said.
In an interview, da Silva said she decided to construct the clinic following the pressure she received from parents with children with special needs in the area.
“Jacaranda is a school for just education. But then, I saw many women bringing their children here asking for help [because] they couldn’t go all the way to Machinjiri, to places like SOS Village where they could take their children with special needs. What I thought then was to seek a grant from the American Embassy and luckily we received the grant to build the clinic,” she said.
One of the beneficiaries of the project, Joyce Kachingwe, whose son is physically challenged, commended the Jacaranda for taking the physiotherapy clinic to their community.
