The African-Hungarian Union – Past, Present and Future

Twelve years ago, seeing the challenges but also the huge potential in the African continent, prominent members of African diaspora in Hungary founded the African-Hungarian Union. Since 2006, AHU has become the biggest Africa-related international NGO in Hungary with the aim of promoting cultural exchange, awareness raising and advocacy, while offering a base for development and humanitarian initiatives focusing on the „black continent”.Besides the African projects, AHU aims to become increasingly active in its Hungarian activities.

GLOBS Magazine says, as regards children, AHU has been realizing several child support programs since 2010. These programs offer fostering of parent sponsorship for the donors, who can support the education and the nursing of a chosen child by a certain amount of donation on a monthly basis. The programs run in Ethiopia, Cameroon, Mali and Uganda.

Our school programs in Hungary under the name of Ko-nipa Africa! are tailor-made to the given institution and age-group; kindergartens, schools, summer camps, etc. The program consists of lectures, handicrafts, African drumming and drum-shows, etc. The main goal of the program is to broaden children’s knowledge of the continent and to do away with the stereotypes of African people.

Under the medical projects, more than 40 doctors and health professionals participated in the program, and helped over 40 000 patients between 2009 and 2018. We have been present in African countries, such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Madagascar, Guinea, Malawi, and Uganda.AHU is committed to make every possible effort to maintain close and mutual cooperation with our partner health institutions for the success of future missions in African countries, as well as to explore other possibilities of voluntary work and different fields of humanitarian projects.

Our organization together with the Hungarian Trade and Cultural Center has decided to establish health centers throughout the African continent. The main objective is to establish locally long term and sustainable health care service.

Meanwhile in Hungary, the AHU Ambulance Service intends to participate in rescue work primarily under the direction of the National Ambulance Service. Additionally, it aims to accomplish short medical missions and screening tests, as well as to provide event paramedic service. Short medical missions are designed to reach as many underprivileged regions in Hungary as possible, where communities have poor access to healthcare services, people are mistrustful of doctors or have little awareness of the importance of prevention and healthy lifestyle, due to lack of information and health education. We are also offering a volunteer emergency care assistant training for those who feel the courage and strength to help.