In Rwanda, Help Arrives

When TIME set out to cover the plight of women giving birth in Rwanda--where 1 in 9 women dies during childbirth--we did so with a plan to help readers help the women we were writing about. Working with Netaid and the International Rescue Committee, TIME developed "birthing kits," which will be distributed to Rwandan women to help ensure safer, cleaner deliveries of their children. We chronicled the tragic death of one Rwandan woman and unveiled the new Internet initiative in our April 17 issue.

The response from readers and visitors to the Netaid website has been impressive: $226,272 had been donated as of last week, which included the purchase of more than 12,000 birthing kits to be distributed in Rwanda. Dr. Emmanuel d'Harcourt, the IRC coordinator in Rwanda, says women there have been "elated" by the number of kits donated. He has set up a group of more than 30 traditional birthing attendants in Kibungo, Rwanda, who will package and distribute the kits over the coming months. And D'Harcourt says the story--and reader response--has had another impact: Rwandan government officials have begun making maternal health a higher priority.

But D'Harcourt says that as much as people in Rwanda were touched by the donations, they were even more moved by the notes and postings he passed along from the Netaid website. "I have lost several babies in spite of the best available medical care," an American woman wrote after making a donation to the program. "I know the emotional trauma of losing a baby, and cannot imagine knowing that my baby might have lived if only...I hope I can spare a few women that anguish." The site, which can be reached at www.netaid.org is still accepting donations.