On the second day of her visit, Ms. Judd joined PSI/Rwanda in commemorating the 1994 genocide with a visit to the Gisozi Genocide memorial site and Nyamata church. In interviews with the press, she expressed her regret at the inaction by western governments to intervene during the genocide, especially by the United States. In her own words, Ms. Judd describes her sentiments over the visit: “This was a highly emotional day for me, visiting such an honest, impressive and direct memorial of the tragedy of the Rwandan genocide. If we remember the events of 1994, we can hope to prevent such a terrible tragedy from happening again. Never again.”
The following day, Ms.Judd joined the Minister of Health, Dr. Jean Damascene Ntawukuriryayo, in World Malaria Day activities.. The two, along with provincial and district officials visited a private sector pharmacy to officially launch PRIMO antimalarial treatment, ideal for treating mild cases of malaria in children under 5. With funding from USAID, under the President’s Malaria Initiative, PRIMO has quickly become the most effective antimalarial drug in Rwanda. Under the pharmaceutical name Coartem, PRIMO has gained popularity for its protective packaging, cultural appeal and its use of the local language on its packaging to assist illiterate populations with using the drug correctly. These measures not only help promotes correct and consistent use, but also protect against the formation of drug resistant strains of the malaria parasite. Rwanda is the first African nation to make Coartem available on a national scale outside of the public sector, at heavily subsidized prices, in locally relevant packaging. As a result, the country has seen increased access to treatment, and significantly reduced the burden of malaria since October 2006, when the drug was first introduced.
On the last day of her visit, Ms. Judd visited the Centre Dushishoze, a youth-friendly reproductive health center in Musanze, created in partnership with the Bishop of the Shyira Diocese of the Episcopal Church of Rwanda. The center is implemented under the leadership of the CNLS and the Ministry of Youth and offers a comprehensive package of services, including voluntary counseling and testing, treatment of sexually transmitted infections, family planning counseling, reproductive health education, vocational skills training, and recreational activities. After touring the center, the group heard testimonials from youth and female sex workers who had benefited from the services it offered. One sex worker shared her experience of having been persuaded by Dushishoze staff to test for her HIV status and afterwards learning that she was HIV positive. She ultimately sought treatment through a public health facility recommended by Dushishoze counsellors, received the appropriate treatment, and as a result, nearly doubled her body weight and is able to engage in income generating activities through membership in an association of female sex workers organized at the center.
In a press conference at the end of her one week stay, Ms. Judd praised the progress being made in Rwanda saying, “Rwanda is unique in Africa. It is stable, secure, non-corrupt. I am impressed by the tremendous leadership of the Rwandan government, including the dynamic and progressive leadership of the Rwandan Minister of Health, who is boldly communicating the importance of family planning to Rwanda’s future. It is wholly appropriate that I started my visit with a day to commemorate the genocide. From there, I have seen a range of programs implemented by the Government of Rwanda in partnership with organizations like PSI that give me hope. I leave Rwanda with a message of hope, as I should, given the tremendous progress that has been made here over the past 14 years”.
When asked what Ms. Judd will do upon her return to the United States from Rwanda, Ms. Judd noted that she plans to advocate for additional resources for health in Rwanda, including support to expand the holistic approach to youth-friendly reproductive health centers such as Dushishoze, and to expand access to modern family planning methods.
