About Gede
History
2002
Gede Foundation was incorporated on January 25, 2002 and registered as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization on July 2003 in Washington, DC, USA. Its first office was at the founder’s basement in Maryland and was moved to 1825 Eye St., NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC.
The Nigeria office was opened in May at Plot 2813, No. 9, what was then Zaire Crescent, Off Danube Street, Maitama, Abuja. It was registered on October. Mrs. Dayo Keshi, former Vice President of the Foundation, conducted visits and established initial linkages with organizations who worked for orphans and vulnerable children (OVC).
By September, the Foundation partnered with the Organization for Positive Productivity (OPP) towards a nutrition program that will benefit people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA’s). The beneficiaries of the program were members of the the Catholic Action Committee on AIDS (CACA), a support group for PLWHAs. Through the guidance of a dietitian, members were taught to prepare nutritious food from raw materials that were locally available.
A committee was set up to study and package a scholarship program for OVCs.
2003
Two seminars were held in March for media and NGO representatives: (1) HIV/AIDS: The Role of the Mass Media in Creating Awareness on the Issues of Stigma and Discrimination and (2) HIV/AIDS in Nigeria: Situation Assessment and Challenges to Prevention and Control.
The Nutrition Committee was formed to work with the Catholic Action Committee on AIDS in August.
A gala event was held at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, DC to introduce the Foundation and to raise funds for the resource center in Nigeria on September 18. It was attended by more than 900 people. President Clinton addressed the audience in a video-taped speech.
By September, 21 children orphaned by AIDS were admitted to the OVC Scholarship Pilot Program. They were subsequently registered in various schools around Abuja.
The Gede AIDS & Infectious Diseases Research Institute (GAIDRI) was created to address the clinical needs of the country. Initial arrangements were made to purchase laboratory equipment and to hire staff using the funds raised at the gala event in Washington, DC.
A seminar was held on World AIDS Day with the theme, “Tackling Stigma and Discrimination of OVCs in Nigeria.”
2004
This year saw the start of many initiatives in the Foundation, namely: (1) the opening of its laboratory and clinical services to patients in Abuja, (2) meeting of the International Advisory Board composed of HIV/AIDS experts from different countries in Washington, DC, and (3) the first meeting of the Governing Board in Abuja.
Beneficiaries of the OVC Scholarship Program were enrolled for the second term. Part of the OVC activities for the year included a gathering at the Children’s Zoo in Asokoro, Abuja, where they met their fellow scholars. Each was given a gift from Ms. Daphna Katz, a Gede Foundation donor.
An interactive seminar on “Development and Clinical Trials of Vaccines and Drugs for HIV/AIDS and Other Infectious Disease” was participated in by international resource persons and local health professionals on May 25.
Ms. Clara Ebegbare (Program Officer) presented a poster at the XV International AIDS Conference in Bangkok, Thailand on “Mitigating the Social Effects of HIV/AIDS on Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) in Abuja” in July.
The Foundation donated the following items to Maitama District Hospital to kickoff its initiative on prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT): color TV, video player, desktop computer and keyboard, 3000 nevirapine tablets and 30 bottles of nevirapine syrup.
In July, a workshop was conducted on advocacy and skills building for PMTCT in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health and the Policy Project for PMTCT coordinators in Calabar, Cross River State.
Training for PMTCT and Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) was held on August 30-September 3 for health and social workers in Abuja.
2005
The Washington, DC office moved to 1875 Eye St., NW, Suite 500.
Gede Nigeria served a growing number of clientele at the clinic and the laboratory.
Continued efforts were made to write and discuss proposals for collaboration with Adamawa State, corporate sponsors, federal government agencies on extending our anti-retroviral treatment (ART) services and the OVC scholarship program.
The World Bank, through the Federal Action Committee on AIDS (FACA), awarded the Foundation with a $30,000 grant to expand its scholarship program for schoolyear 2005-2006. Forty-five (45) scholars were enrolled in the regular scholarship program and sixty-five (65) were enrolled in the skills acquisition program in rural settlements around the Federal Capital Territory -- Kabussa, Karshi, and Jiwa.
2006
The Foundation expanded its support for OVC outside Abuja. 178 scholars were supported in 5 states: Abuja, Benue, Cross River, Kaduna, and Osun. 66 children were trained under the Skills Acquisition Project as of December.
Several organizations signed up with the Foundation to avail of our laboratory services, namely: the Education and Trust Fund (ETF), Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO), Africare, the World Bank, the Royal Netherlands Embassy, the Federal Ministry of Defense, and the International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Program (ICAP).
A total of 2,673 clients came to the clinic from January - December. As a treatment site recognized by the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) and the Federal Ministry of Health, many clients availed of the free drugs distributed by the government. More than 10,000 tests were run in the laboratory by the end of December.
Community outreach activities involving free HIV counseling and testing were held at the Utako Market (154), National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Camp (398), villages of Durumi (312), Kubwa (114), Gwagwalada (72), and Nyanya (111) between Febuary and March.
In December, the Gishiri Community was the site of the Foundation’s World AIDS Day celebration. 185 people were tested for HIV in partnership with NACA, UNAIDS, UNFPA, Africare, and the Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria (NEPWHAN).
The Society for Family Health (SFH) awarded a two-year grant to the Foundation for capacity building of health workers around the country on HIV testing and counseling. From a Global Fund grant, SFH collaborated with the Foundation to train 360 health workers in the northern states in preparation for voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) sites that the country intends to set up in that region. 196 health workers from Benue, Nasarawa, Taraba, Kogi, Niger, Adamawa, and Katsina were trained on counseling, testing, laboratory practices, and record keeping.
2007
A total of 2,253 clients came to the clinic from January through December. Almost the same number availed of free anti-retroviral drugs through the NACA program.
7,316 clients availed of the different laboratory tests. Most (62%) of them came for HIV testing. Others came for tests on serology, sexually transmitted infections, blood chemistry, and hematology.
Aside from the remaining funds from the 2005-2006 World Bank/FACA grant, the Foundation received a grant from the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs amounting to N1 million to support orphaned children under OVC Scholarship Program. 107 were enrolled in regular school, while 166 were enrolled for skills training in collaboration with several NGOs across 5 states (e.g., Jireh Foundation, Ohioma Foundation, Mothers’ Welfare Group, Living Hope Care, We-Women Development Initiative).
A memorandum of understanding was signed between the Foundation and the Kabussa Community on establishing a skills acquisition center to sustain the impact of the training to OVC beneficiaries in 2006. The land and building were donated by the community while the Foundation equipped the center with 2 sewing machines, 2 knitting machines, and educational materials.
The SFH/Global Fund training for HIV counseling and testing continued in March from the 2006 grant. More (142) health care workers were trained in Plateau, Gombe, Kaduna, Sokoto, Borno, and Abuja on counseling, testing, laboratory practices, and record keeping.
Corporate partners continued to send in employees for different kinds of tests. These included the Royal Netherlands Embassy, the Ministry of Defense, International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Program (ICAP), Christ Medical Mission, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF/Doctors Without Borders), Education Trust Fund (ETF), Volunteer Services Overseas (VSO), Rainbow Clinics, and the World Bank.
