DUSHANBE, August 14, 2008, Asia-Plus — Six mobile hospitals will appear in Tajikistan.
Speaking in an interview with Asia-Plus, Imomberdi Berdov, junior coordinator of the Swiss Disaster Reduction Program in Central Asia, Swiss Cooperation Office (SDC) in Tajikistan, said that a ceremony of handover of these six mobile hospitals to the Ministry of Health (MoH) is being held today.
According to him, the hospitals are handed over to Tajikistan within the framework of the Project for Redeployment of Army Equipment (WAM).
The container hospitals, costing 72,300 Swiss franks each (equivalent to some $66,000), will be placed in Dushanbe, Khujand, Qurghon Teppa, Khorog, and the Rasht Valley, Mr. Berdov said.
Between now and 2010, the Swiss Armed Forces intend to decommission, sell and donate surplus military supplies. In response to this development, SDC and the DDPS (Federal Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sports) have launched the WAM Project to reuse such equipment, which does not include weapons or items that could be used to make weapons. The cost/benefit ratio must be adequate and compatible with the “do no harm” principle and sustainability which apply to humanitarian aid and development cooperation projects. WAM supplies are released solely for non-commercial, humanitarian purposes. They may not be sold, and any contravention will be sanctioned under the terms of paragraph 3 of the Donation Agreement.
