As a result, project sponsors leave offices of the development finance institution disappointed that they did not get funding to take their concepts off the ground. However, there are several others who the agency was able to believe in their ideas and hence provided funding without a hassle. Dr Walter Moloi, who leads the Pholong Centre for Kidney Diseases and Dialysis in Maun, can attest to that. In 2022, Pholong Medical Clinics responded to a Ministry of Health call for service providers in underserved areas and Dr Moloi says they had limited resources at the time. “We only had about P1.5 million when we started. Commercial banks were not interested in backing the project,” he explains. “CEDA believed in the idea and provided P5.5 million. That allowed us to procure dialysis machines, hire skilled staff, and set up the clinic,” he says.
Now, the centre has become a critical healthcare facility in Ngamiland, offering dialysis treatment to patients who previously had to travel hundreds of kilometres for care. All thanks to the P5.5 million funding injection from the agency that was established by the government to provide financial and technical support for business development. Before the centre opened, patients with kidney failure in the region were forced to travel to Francistown or Gaborone to access dialysis services. The absence of local treatment options meant high travel costs, missed appointments, and deteriorating health outcomes for many. The Pholong Centre for Kidney Diseases and Dialysis, which is located at Letsholathebe II Memorial Hospital in Maun, now serves 66 patients. It offers haemodialysis, kidney screening, and consultation services and employs 26 healthcare professionals and is the only dialysis centre in Ngamiland. Dr Moloi says the centre’s impact has been substantial. “We’ve managed to significantly reduce the burden on patients who had to travel long distances for treatment. This has improved their consistency in receiving dialysis and, as a result, improved their health outcomes,” he notes.
