Essex Construction, LLC

Pan African Health Foundation News Release (PAHF)

Major General Roger R. Blunt, AUS (Ret.) Elected Chairman PAHF US

At a recent meeting of the Board of Directors, the Pan African Health Foundation (PAHF) elected Major General Roger R. Blunt, AUS (Ret.) as Chairman. General Blunt succeeds Mr. Yuichi Ishimaru, the organization’s founder and Chairman since 2003. Mr Ishimaru, a former Executive Vice President of the Marubeni Corporation and current member of the Nigerian Presidential Advisory Council, will remain on the Board in the US and continue his efforts to raise momentum for PAHF around the world.

Currently, General Blunt is Chairman of the Board, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Essex Construction, LLC. He is a civil Engineer and a Nuclear Engineer, registered professionally in New York State and the District of Columbia. A West Point graduate, he holds two Masters Degrees in Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Doctor of Public Service Degree from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

General Blunt will continue the PAHF (non-profit, 501 (c) 3) objective to raise health standards and foster economic development in Africa with sustainable solutions. PAHF’s comprehensive new approach focuses on infrastructure development as a means of addressing the link between poverty and disease. General Blunt brings much project management experience as the organization enters the implementation phase of a project which will build a factory in Nigeria to produce more than 100 million Auto-Disable (AD) syringes per year on a not-for-profit basis. AD syringes, at a cost of only 6 cents each, can prevent deadly syringe reuse, reducing the spread of HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis, and other blood-born infections. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that up to 50% of syringes are re-used in Africa, leading to millions of infections every year.

The project is well underway. The total cost of the project is approximately $21 million, towards which PAHF has already raised more than $6 million. Under General Blunt’s leadership PAHF expects to raise the additional funds and complete the project within the next l8 months.

Contact:
Meredith Stakem, PAHF
(202) 293-2110; info@pahf.org
Photo Available for Immediate Release

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