Due to the successful expansion of maternal and child health care in Lwala, Dr. Milton Ochieng’ was invited to report on the progress of the Lwala Community Alliance on stage with President Clinton during the opening session of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) annual meeting in New York City. CGI is an exclusive invitation-only summit that brings together a diverse group of global leaders including current and former heads of state, Fortune 500 CEOs, national and local government officials, and leaders from the nonprofit sector. The goal of the annual meeting is to devise and implement workable solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges. In 2009, the Lwala Community Alliance first attended CGI and was highlighted for our Commitment to Action in the area of maternal and child health. Due to the significant progress made in our 2009 commitment, the Lwala Community Alliance has been granted another complimentary membership to attend the 2011 CGI annual meeting held in New York City from September 20-22. Co-founder Milton Ochieng’ spoke in the opening plenary about the successful growth of the Lwala Clinic, which is now a sub-district level hospital with a dedicated maternity wing. Because delivery numbers in Lwala have surged by 300%, Milton also spoke on a panel in a session entitled “Reproducing Success: Game-changing Interventions in Women’s Health” on the final day of the conference. Due to the success of our sewing cooperative in Lwala, Grace Ochieng’, the cooperative’s founder, also received in invitation to CGI. It was a great event for Lwala.
Some of this year’s notable participants included President Barack Obama; Secretary of State Hilary Clinton; former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Tony Blair; Muhammed Yunus, Founder of Grameen Bank and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize; Trudie Styler and Sting; Robert Diamond, Chief Executive of Barclays; Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda; Muhtar Kent, Chairman and CEO of Coca-Cola Company; Nicholas Kristof, Columnist for The New York Times; and Jeff Raikes, CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Former President Bill Clinton recently stated, “Since we began in 2005, CGI members have made great progress in addressing critical global issues by making more than 2,000 commitments through CGI that have and will improve the lives of more than 300 million people in more than 180 countries. As many of these commitments come to fruition, I am proud that we will be showcasing the tangible impact they have made.” The Lwala Community Alliance is honored to be counted among CGI’s network of influential global leaders and have its work spotlighted in this year’s annual meeting.
