AmeriCares Partners with the U.S. Department of State to Send Medical Aid to Tashkent, Uzbekistan

AmeriCares Foundation
Thursday, 20 July 2000

61,000 Pounds of Aid to Arrive on Monday, July 24, 2000

AmeriCares, the international disaster relief agency, announced that it will deliver approximately $3,000,000 worth of medicines, medical supplies and nutritional supplements to the citizens of Uzbekistan in support of the country's healthcare system. Since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Uzbekistan has been bearing the burden of building and developing its own healthcare system. To help them meet these challenges, AmeriCares will be partnering with the Uzbek organization, Soglum Avlod Uchun (For the Health of Coming Generations), which was founded in 1993, by a special Presidential directive in order to serve the citizens of Uzbekistan.

"In Uzbekistan, the year 2000 has been proclaimed as the 'Year of the Healthy Generation,' " says Bob Macauley, Founder and Chairman of AmeriCares. "We are pleased to contribute to the healthcare system in this special year."

The air shipment is being sponsored by the U.S Department of State and will be shipped from Oostende, Belgium with a scheduled arrival in Tashkent on Monday, July 24, 2000. AmeriCares is pleased to have the sponsorship of the U.S. Department of State and thanks Ambassador Joseph A. Presel and the U.S. Embassy in Tashkent.

Once in Uzbekistan, Jennifer Mulik, Project Director for AmeriCares, will work with the Soglum Avlod Uchun Foundation and the Ministry of Health to distribute the medical supplies throughout the country. The foundation has a well established infrastructure with regional offices and mobile brigades of workers who will work with AmeriCares in the warehousing and distribution process. AmeriCares' humanitarian cargo includes antibiotics, analgesics, medical supplies, vitamins, nutritional supplements and personal hygiene products.

Since its inception in 1982, AmeriCares has responded with emergency medicines, medical supplies, and nutritional items to victims of disasters, famine and war. To date AmeriCares has provided more than $2.5 billion in relief supplies to over 130 countries worldwide, including the United States.

AmeriCares is the world's largest private nonprofit disaster relief and humanitarian aid organization that provides immediate response to emergency medical needs - and supports long-term healthcare programs - for all people around the world, irrespective of race, creed, or political persuasion.

For more information, or to contact AmeriCares Foundation, see their website at: www.americares.org