Delivering Dignity

Emerita Dusabeyezu reflects with poignancy as she recounts life before a health post was set up in her rural village of Muyange, located in Ngenda cell, Nyarugenge sector, Bugesera district.

The 45-year-old resident recalls the long, exhausting journeys to Nyarugenge Health Centre—several kilometres away—whenever her children fell sick or when she was expecting.

The trek was an arduous journey that took hours through steep hills. During pregnancy, the fear of giving birth by the roadside was constant. Her voice softens as she recalls these struggles, her eyes momentarily clouding with the weight of those memories.

But then she smiles—a smile carrying relief and renewed hope—following the establishment of a health post by Society for Family Health (SFH), in partnership with the Ministry of Health.

Her relationship with the health facility is one she hopes will benefit future generations.

“I was the first patient to give birth at Ngenda Health Post,” says the mother of six proudly. “Now I come for check-ups, bring my children when they are sick, and encourage my friends to do the same.”

For her, the change is deeply personal, a daily reassurance that healthcare is no longer distant but close and reliable.

Her story mirrors those of thousands of families in her community. For years, they faced the similar hardships: walking nearly three hours to the nearest medical facility often meant many arrived too weak for treatment—and some never made it.

That sad chapter closed six months ago, in February 2025, when Ngenda Health Post opened its doors. More than just a building, it has become a symbol of dignity—proof that health services can be close, reliable, and respectful of people’s lives.

For Innocent Rwagatore, the Ngenda village leader, the health post is nothing short of lifesaving.