Programs & Events
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From left to right: Ms. Barry Bibata, Minister of Woman Promotion and Child Protection - U.S. Ambassador Bernadette M. Allen - Ms. Boukary Zila, Minister of Population and Social Reforms - Mr. Yacine Diallo, Resident Representative of UNFPA.
Women's Heath high on agenda for Women's History Month
On March 20, 2008, as part of the U.S. Embassy’s commemoration of National Women’s History Month, the American Cultural Center sponsored a presentation by Nigerien women’s health activist Ms. Salamatou Traore on Socio-economic Reintegration of Women Victims of Fistula. Obstetric fistula is a severe medical condition, which can result from severe or prolonged childbirth, when adequate medical care is not available. The event was coordinated in partnership with Ms. Traore’s organization DIMOL, a local NGO which runs a center to assist fistula victims. Ms. Traore detailed the main causes of fistula in Niger, which include delayed medical care for women in labor and pregnancies among teen brides, whose bodies have not sufficiently developed to give birth easily. Because of the symptoms associated with this condition, which can include urinary and fecal leaking, victims are often ostracized from their communities. DIMOL offers medical assistance and reconstructive surgery to afflicted women, and also administers a program to assist them in reintegrating into their communities.
