A special thank you
Message from the President
Dear Friends of AKU,
As we reflect on 2015, we have much to celebrate, thanks to your support. With the conclusion of the University’s highly successful Stadium Road Capital Campaign, we have marked another milestone in our ongoing effort to deliver cutting-edge health care and educate outstanding health professionals for the developing world. In total, the Campaign raised a remarkable US$ 27.6 million. This money is making it possible for us to:
Save the lives of premature and critically ill babies and children through an expanded Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and Paediatric Intensive Care Unit
Improve outcomes for surgical patients through new, state-of-the-art Operating Rooms that are also equipped with technology to enhance learning for students.
Detect cancer and heart and brain illnesses early, using our newly acquired PET-CT scanner and cyclotron.
Treat more heart patients and research ways to improve cardiac care through our planned Centre of Excellence in Cardiac Sciences.
Provide capacity building for health practitioners and research ways to improve health for women and children in rural areas through our Mother and Child Health Research and Training Centre.
On behalf of the entire Aga Khan University community - leadership, faculty, students and staff - and all those who benefit from our work, I want to express our gratitude to everyone whose generosity made the Capital Campaign such a resounding success. The gifts we received are already saving and enhancing lives, and will continue to do so for decades to come.
Of course, those who gave to the Capital Campaign are far from the only donors we have to thank. This year, the University received more than US$ 30 million in new commitments, ranging in size from a few dollars to US$ 12 million, and supporting everything from scholarships for students at the Institute for Educational Development in Dar es Salaam to our ambitious plans for expansion and transformation in East Africa. We are deeply grateful to each and every one of you for helping us to make a difference.
In addition, the governments of Australia, Canada, France, Germany and the United States have also supported the University through major grants and financing. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has been very generous in supporting our work in the improvement of women and child health as have the Rockefeller and Hilton Foundations. All of this support speaks volumes about the impact of the University, the high regard in which it is held, and the trust it has earned.
We started construction on our New Private Wing and launched our new Centre for Innovation in Medical Education, which was entirely funded by donors and features simulation technologies that will help our students to hone critical skills. We also announced a bold new initiative that you are sure to hear more about: the establishment of an Aga Khan University Hospital in Kampala to bring world-class health care services and education to Uganda.
Once again, I want to thank you for supporting the University and its mission. Your generosity is making an extraordinary difference in people’s lives. I wish all of you and your families a happy, healthy and productive 2016, and I look forward to sharing more good news with you in the year to come.
Yours sincerely,
Firoz Rasul
President
