A charity founded by a group of health professionals from Galway is seeking walkers, sponsors and volunteers to help them raise €30,000 in their quest to continue delivering sustainable primary healthcare to an impoverished African township.

Established in 2009, i4Life is a non-profit organisation, working among the marginalised communities in Lusaka. And their latest fundraising initiative is to instal a solar power and water pump system at the Primary Health Centre in the Linda Compound outside Lusaka.

To achieve that, they are organising a very special trek – in conjunction with Salthill Rotary Club – which will see participants walk in the shoes of a community health worker on one of Ireland’s most historic routes.

Because the 20k walk will take place along the historic Famine Way – from Strokestown, Co Roscommon, to Cloondara, Co Longford – on the Easter Bank Holiday Monday, April 21, with a fundraising target of €30,000.

Linda is a very disadvantaged township close to the city of Livingstone, around 30km south of Lusaka.

i4Life, in partnership with the local Ministry of Health, delivers sustainable primary healthcare to the community in the Linda Compound, which is home to approximately 80,000 people.

The Primary Health Centre in Linda serves over 3,000 patients each month, including a significant number of children – and, according to i4Life voluntary director Maura Moran, access to clean water and reliable electricity is crucial to enhancing the quality of care they receive.

“This project will ensure that healthcare professionals can offer better services and improve the health and well-being of the entire community, said Maura, who is also a co-founder of i4Life.

“i4Life is entirely staffed by volunteers who give generously of their time to organise and travel to Zambia to work for week-long stints, up to three times per year,” added Maura.

Let’s Walk Together aims to aid that effort while, at the same time, giving participants the opportunity to metaphorically walk in the shoes of a community health worker.

“By walking alongside community health workers, participants will not only gain an understanding of their essential roles but also raise much-needed funds to support crucial healthcare infrastructure,” said Maura.

The Famine Way Walk is the culmination of this fundraising campaign, because there is a collective goal of walking 3,000 kilometres throughout April.

“The more you walk, the closer we reach our target of €30,000. You can contribute daily but don’t miss the flagship event on April 21, where we’ll walk 20km along the historic Famine Way,” said Maura.

You can also come on board as a sponsor or as a volunteer, helping help with event coordination or in providing assistance on the day.

The walk was officially launched by RTÉ’s Teresa Mannion at the Ardilaun Hotel in Galway last week, with members of i4Life and Salthill Rotary Club in attendance.

You can get a fundraising card by emailing orla.i4life@gmail.com or, for more information, go to https://i4life.ie/i4life-salthill-rotary-club-fundraiser/.

Pictured at the launch of i4Life’s Famine Way Walk, in conjunction with Galway Salthill Rotary Club, were (from left) Katherine Farrell, i4Life; Ciaran Wynne, Galway Salthill Rotary Club; Orla McShane, i4Life; Rotary Club Secretary Jerry O’Leary; Rotary member Eammon Conroy; RTÉ’s Teresa Mannion; Pat Hobbert from Rotary; Ardilaun Hotel MD and Rotary member John Ryan; Maura Moran, Volunteer Director of i4Life; Gerald Purcell, Rotary, and Galway Salthill Rotary Club President Pat Quinlan.