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Kenyan Clinic Rejects Trump Abortion Policy, Loses $2 Million In U.S. Aid
“The full impact of the order won't be felt until September [2018]. That's when the U.S. government fiscal year comes to an end.”
“But health groups that aren't complying with the policy are already feeling the effects. The U.S. has pulled the plug on funds that had been previously allocated but not yet spent prior to the Trump order.... outreach services, which were funded by USAID in countries like Uganda, Kenya, Senegal, Madagascar, Pakistan and Myanmar, have already stopped....
“That's the case for Family Health Options Kenya (FHOK), Kenya's oldest provider of sexual and reproductive health services.”
In October 2017, $640,000 that was in a four-year pipeline for ongoing work was lost because the funds, which came from the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, were discontinued. Since then, another $1.56 million has been lost because FHOK was unable to renew project funds and bid for future U.S. funding, says Amos Simpano, director of clinical services. FHOK says that amounts to nearly 60 percent of the organization's funding.”
“One of the organization's 14 clinics has closed down and a clinic in Kibera, Nairobi's largest slum and where Ouyo works, could be next. FHOK has also ceased outreach services to underprivileged communities, which it estimates has impacted more than 76,000 women and young girls to date.”
From an interview with Melvine Ouyo, a FHKO nurse who visited Washington, D.C. recently:
Q: "Tell me about how this has affected the clinic you work at in Kibera?"
A: "We had to lay off six staff [out of ten] just to be able to sustain the clinic. We also have not been able to acquire any [new] equipment in the past several months because of a lack of funding. We have not improved any of our equipment [such as autoclaving machines used to sterilize equipment]. It means we are still just operating from where we were last year.”