That is at the invitation of the President of the Republic of Madagascar, His Excellency Hery Rajaonarimampianina.

Speaking in a news release, Mercy Ships President and Founder, Don Stephens said, “We are honored to be able to come alongside the island nation of Madagascar and their government’s effort to strengthen their healthcare infrastructure through the (free) training and capacity building Mercy Ships offers.”

He added, “Thousands of patients are suffering from pathologies which the specialists on the Mercy Ship are equipped to assist through the surgical expertise of our dedicated professionals.”

The Mercy Ship is expected to sail from the Canary Islands by mid-September with a stopover in Cape Town, South Africa, at the end of the month for refueling and crewing. Anticipated arrival into Tamatave, Madagascar, is by the end of October.

The Mercy Ship is equipped with five state-of-the-art operating rooms and is a modern hospital specializing in maxillofacial, reconstructive, plastics, orthopedic, ophthalmic, dental and obstetric fistula surgeries.

According to the news release, doctors on board anticipate operating on thousands of patients during the 16,500-ton hospital ship’s stay.

The surgeries and care are provided at no cost to the Malagasy people, and the focus of care is on the population, which has very little or no access to specialized surgical healthcare.

Madagascar is located off the southeastern coast of Africa. More than 43 percent of its more than 22 million inhabitants are under the age of 20, and the nation is positioned 151 out of 187 countries in the U.N. Human Development Index. (Photo via flickr)

A protracted political crisis in recent years has endangered the nation’s ability to meet a number of millennium development goals, and taken a heavy toll on Madagascar’s economy and people, especially the most vulnerable.

Mercy Ships said there is a real need for the expertise that Mercy Ships can bring to the nation, both in terms of specialized operations, as well as in education and capacity building alongside Malagasy professionals working in medical care and surgical need.

Mercy Ships will work closely with the Government of Madagascar to evaluate the exact needs, pathologies, and regional priorities.

Donovan Palmer, Mercy Ships Group managing director, said in the news release, “While we had been looking at the possibility of coming to Madagascar, we have decided to come earlier and to postpone our plans with Guinea and Benin due to the Ebola crisis in the West Africa region.”

The last visit of a Mercy Ship to Madagascar was in 1996.

Mercy Ships uses hospital ships to deliver free healthcare services, capacity building and sustainable development to those without access in the developing world.

Founded in 1978 by Don and Deyon Stephens, Mercy Ships has worked in more than 70 countries providing services valued at more than $1 billion, treating more than 2.5 million people.

For more information visit www.mercyships.org.

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