Service members from Combined Joint Task Force–Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) dedicated a new hospital during a ceremony in Pader, Uganda on May 5, 2009.

Construction on the hospital began after CJTF-HOA representatives visited the area in 2007 and asked local officials what would most help citizens in the area. The hospital was among the Ugandans' requests.

"This is a very important day for Pader District," said Pader District Local Government Chairman Odok Peter w'Oceng. "We mark the conclusion of a long journey today."

Government officials, local residents, and Uganda Peoples' Defense Force (UPDF) officers attended the ceremony and thanked the U.S. service members and civilians who made the hospital possible.

"The military did this for us, and they get their money from the government," UPDF Colonel Sam Kavuma said. "Where does the government gets its money? The American taxpayers. So really, it is all Americans helping Ugandans today."

U.S. Army Colonel Lorrie Oldham, CJTF-HOA force surgeon and guest speaker at the event, said that the hospital's presence will help with the three largest health problems in the region; malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS. But she added the minister of health said it will also address other problems that are tougher to deal with in remote regions like Pader, such as diarrhea, worms -- which she noted kill many Ugandan children without treatment -- and diabetes.

"Before this hospital was built, the closest medical facility was in Lira, which is about an hour away," Oldham said. "Having this building does several things: the town will now have doctors, and it will also have surgical capability and capacity for maternal care, which is badly needed in this region."

She said the recent restoration of stability in the region contributed to the hospital project.

"For regional stability, you need regional health," Oldham said. "In northern Uganda, there has really only been peace for about five years. This is an area that is undergoing an urban revitalization. The U.S. government is playing a critical role in rebuilding stability and will continue to build that goodwill through continued cooperation with the UPDF."

In undertaking this project, the United States cooperated with both Ugandan health officials and military officers on logistics, funding and labor.

"One significant thing the [U.S. military] has done is to cut out the middleman and come to the people of Africa in the jungle and try to help us," said Oceng. "You are really brothers and sisters indeed."

Oldham added the hospital's presence will enable CJTF-HOA's continued involvement in the area, potentially serving as a site for future medical civil action projects.

"With this hospital now being here, we have a site to bring in specialists to work with local physicians here," Oldham said. "We can keep current, ongoing medical intervention in the region, and help people live healthier, longer and much better lives."