Hyundai Motor Donates 10 Mobile Clinics to African Nations
- Starting with Ethiopia, Hyundai will offer 10 mobile clinics to five African nations to provide free medical care to the underprivileged
- Mobile internal medicine clinic and mobile digital X-ray clinic to provide in-depth medical examination and treatment
- Donation is part of Hyundai’s worldwide CSR initiatives
(Seoul, Korea) Hyundai Motor Company will donate a total of 10 mobile clinics to African nations this year as part of the company’ s "Moving the World Together" Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, which aims to contribute to society and be a better corporate citizen. The mobile clinics will be used to provide basic medical services to residents of impoverished and remote communities in Africa.
The mobile clinics, composed of a mobile internal medicine clinic and a mobile digital X-ray clinic, are specifically tuned to run on tough road conditions in many African nations. Starting with Ethiopia, a total of 10 mobile clinics will be donated this year to five African nations (Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Ghana and Rwanda). Each country will receive two mobile clinics -- the internal medicine clinic and digital X-ray clinic.
The clinics will be operated in close partnership with the Korea Foundation for International Healthcare, local governments, local clinics and NGOs. The Korea Foundation for International Healthcare will provide consultation and training on the operation of the mobile clinics to local personnel.
To begin the initiative, Hyundai handed over two customized mobile medical clinics to the Ethiopian government today at the Ethiopian Federal Ministry of Health, in Addis Ababa, the nation’s capital. The handover ceremony was attended by Korea's Minister of Foreign Affairs & Trade, Mr. Kim Sung-Hwan; Korean Ambassador to the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Mr. Chung Soonsuk; Minister of Ethiopian Federal Ministry of Health, Dr. Tedros Adhanom; President of Hyundai Motor Company, Mr. Chung Jin-Haeng; and Chairman of Hyundai Marathon Motor Engineering, Mr. Haile Gebreselassie, as well as media members and other guests.
To overcome challenging roads in remote regions of many African nations, the mobile clinics have been developed on Hyundai's four-wheel-drive truck (HD120 chassis, GVW 12,520kg) to boost mobility with an engine displacement of 6,600 cubic centimeters. The truck has air suspension to protect delicate medical equipment and operates fully independently with its own power.
The mobile clinics are self-sufficient hospitals. The mobile digital X-ray clinic is equipped with a digital X-ray machine and remote diagnostic systems. The mobile internal medicine clinic features the latest medical devices, such as digital ultrasonic and portable ECG (electrocardiogram), can conduct basic medical tests, such as malaria screening; and provide medical supplies.
In addition to the donation of vehicles, a total of 60 university students from the Happy Move Global Youth Volunteers program are engaging in volunteer activities July 5 - 16 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The services range from providing free health care, in collaboration with Open Doctors Society of Korea, to installing communal toilets to promoting a more hygienic environment in partnership with Habitat for Humanity International.
Starting with Ethiopia, Hyundai Motor Company will send a total of 500 Happy Move volunteers from July to August to less-developed areas in Thailand, Brazil, India and China. The volunteers will be engaged in various volunteer programs such as environment restoration and provision of medical service.
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The Happy Move Global Youth Volunteers program is one of Hyundai Motor Company’s corporate social responsibility programs. It seeks volunteers from Korean universities to travel around the world to work in areas related to the environment, local welfare, medicine and culture.
Since its foundation in July 2008, Happy Move Global Youth Volunteers has sent 500 university student volunteers every summer and winter to several countries, including India, Brazil, China, Slovakia, Turkey, Egypt and the Philippines.
From July to August of this year, volunteer students will spend about two weeks in their assigned country and work jointly with various NGOs, including Open Doctors Society, Habitat for Humanity International, Food for the Hungry International, International Workcamp Organization, and Ecopeace Asia to alleviate poverty, improve the health of residents, protect the environment, and strengthen local economies.
Among the projects, volunteers will build a children library and renovate a kindergarten in Thailand, work to prevent desertification of Inner Mongolia through the Hyundai Green Zone Project, build houses and provide free medical services in India, and carry out cultural exchange programs in Brazil.
Media Release
For further information contact the Global Public Relations Team
Tel: +82+2—3464-2153 ~ 60
Fax: +82+2—3464-3497
Established in 1967, Hyundai Motor Co. has grown into the Hyundai Motor Group which has ranked as the world’s fifth-largest automaker since 2007 and includes more than two dozen auto-related subsidiaries and affiliates. Hyundai Motor, which has six manufacturing bases outside of South Korea, sold approximately 3.6 million vehicles globally in 2010. Hyundai vehicles are sold in 186 countries through some 5,300 dealerships and showrooms. Further information about Hyundai Motor and its products is available at www.hyundai.com.
