Open Heart Disability Care Trust (OHDCT) is a volunteer-based community organisation consisting of a full time administrator who coordinates over 20 volunteers that run its operations.  The Rotary Club of Sydney Zimbabwe project in partnership with OHDCT supports a community centre in Northern Zimbabwe that provides a range of services to 670 of the region’s most vulnerable children, many of whom are disabled and/or have HIV.  Services that are provided include supplementary feeding, life skills education, ECD Classes, community advocacy and social inclusion.  

Support from Rotary over the last 3 years has provided funding to support the centres activities as well as the purchase of equipment and transport and the siting and drilling of a 60m bore hole which will allow the centre to embark on a number of agricultural projects. The project has supplied over 20,000 meals, 200 + wheelchairs, 2 limbs,  5,000 home visits, ELC education for 40 children, vehicles, infrastructure, and water pumps to name but a few activities.  In 2019, 5 volunteer physiotherapists came from Australia and spent a week at the centre treating the most disabled children and training the parents and volunteers exercises and activities that are continued regularly throughout the year. Recently a visit by 5 volunteer physiotherapists from Australia was arranged to treat and train children and volunteers at the centre providing not only life changing interventions to those that received treatment, but also a framework for ongoing physio support of the children at the centre. To help this project Donate here