Events - Doctors with Africa CUAMM

AM 2025 Nurturing the future

Posted on Novembre 24, 2025Luglio 28, 2026 by Redazione Cuamm

CUAMM Annual Meeting was held on Saturday 22, in Padua. The event featured distinguished speakers including the President of the Italian Republic Sergio Mattarella. Some 4,000 people attended the meeting held under the theme “Nurturing the future”, an occasion to also commemorate 75 years of commitment to the health of the most vulnerable.

The event was hosted by Giorgia Cardinaletti, Italian journalist and opened by Daniele Silvestri – Italian songwriter performing one of his most famous track.

Sergio Giordani, mayor of Padua brought the greetings of the city of Padua at the beginning of the ceremony:

“Today we celebrate a special anniversary: 75 years of activity is an important milestone, but also the symbol of the mission of justice and peace that Doctors with Africa CUAMM carries out in Africa. Some claim that allocating resources to the poorest countries is a waste; CUAMM, instead, shows us another path: not working for the most needy populations, but working together with them.”

And the president of CUAMM, the bishop of Padua, Monsignor Claudio Cipolla, added:

“CUAMM is a beautiful reality that works with daily commitment so that Africa may grow. This year I was in Ethiopia and met many practitioners and doctors trained with CUAMM: they were all Ethiopians, supported by some young doctors from Italy. The world needs justice; it needs one human family living in equality.”

Moving and heartfelt was the speech by Mario Calabresi, journalist and writer:

“For 75 years, CUAMM has nurtured values that elsewhere seem out of fashion. In a time dominated by speed and urgency, you choose patience; you choose not to tire of looking, listening, being present. For 75 years you have been guided by the idea that things must grow, with that sense of rural time that respects the seasons — necessary for projects to become strong, rooted, and able to walk on their own. Every time I meet CUAMM, you confront me with the effort — but also the responsibility — of speaking about the least, of not letting indifference win, of remembering Africa’s needs and opportunities more than its emergencies. It is ‘a surge of the heart’ that leads so many young doctors to knock on your door.”

“To speak of CUAMM’s motivations means telling the story of women and men who decided to stand by Africa. Seventy years ago, the motivation was radical: to leave and treat the sick where there was nothing,” added Giovanni Putoto, head of Planning and Operational Research. “Today we recognize the value of African professionals and facilities, grown and strengthened over these decades. Tomorrow, motivations will be even more linked to the interconnected world we live in: climate change, conflicts, epidemics, and inequalities remind us that no one can exist alone.”

Giovanni Putoto: CUAMM physician and Head of Programming and Operational Research

And the Italian Minister of Universities and Research, Anna Maria Bernini, recalling the collaboration between CUAMM, the Ministry, and the University of Padua, emphasized:

“Investing in Africa is important because it means investing in the lives of all of us. In Mozambique, South Sudan, and Ethiopia, together with CUAMM, we are carrying out concrete projects, but there are still many other challenges to face. We stand with Africa to grow together.”

Anna Maria Bernini: Minister of Universities and Research

This collaboration also opens the way to new challenges, such as the one in Ivory Coast supported by the Mattei Plan, as stated by Stefano Gatti, Director General for Development Cooperation:

“With the Mattei Plan we are developing cooperation with Africa. Healthcare is one of the fundamental pillars: together with CUAMM, in Ivory Coast, we are currently working on projects worth over 2 million euros, with the main goal of reducing child mortality. The wonderful CUAMM team carries these projects forward, and we create the conditions needed to foster cooperation and make it effective.”

Stefano Gatti: Director General for Development Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Speaking on behalf of the banking foundations that support CUAMM in its mission was Gilberto Muraro, president of Fondazione Cariparo, who said from the Padua Fair stage:

“Our Foundation has long stood close to CUAMM. For the efficiency and diligence shown throughout our collaboration, we responded to Don Dante’s appeal on the impact of USAID’s sudden closure, raising 1.5 million euros to mitigate the damage. This represents a renewed sign of trust in CUAMM, which works with competence and passion.”

The CUAMM network is vast and rich in many souls. Among them, the network of medical residents who, together with CUAMM, experience fieldwork. Representing them was Carolina Teston, resident physician in gynecology:

“My experience as a resident in Sierra Leone gave me so much and filled me with gratitude. It was a true privilege, allowing me to grow both professionally and personally.”

On stage next, Alberto Mantovani, president of Humanitas Research Foundation:

“Supporting doctors and health workers in the field means supporting care, but also scientific research. CUAMM conducts high-level research, recognized also through the award from the Accademia dei Lincei. It is research always rooted in fieldwork: research done with passion, with the desire to measure and be measured.”

Alberto Mantovani, President of Humanitas Research Foundation and Daniela Mapelli, Dean of Padua University.

And together with him, the Dean of Padua University, Daniela Mapelli, added:

“Our residents go there to learn and acquire new skills. Working in poor countries does not mean doing ‘poor medicine’: on the contrary, our young doctors return enriched — in clinical practice, in their ability to work in teams, to handle emergencies, and to pay close attention to listening to patients.”

Songwriter Daniele Silvestri took the stage to speak about his recent trip to informal settlements in Apulia, where the CUAMM Bari Group provides assistance to agricultural workers:

“The Casa Sankara ghetto in the Foggia area is truly a piece of Africa, inhabited by people who, although theoretically seasonal workers, end up staying for years. These worlds and realities are full of wonder: one shouldn’t only talk about hardships and what is lacking, but also about the life created there and the pieces of culture that form. CUAMM manages to interpret its mission with simplicity, recognizing that there is a piece of Africa here as well, and that the work done in Africa can also be done in Italy.”

Daniele Silvestri: singer and songwriter

Paolo Rumiz, journalist and writer, recalled with great emotion and intensity Don Luigi Mazzucato, longtime director of CUAMM:

“He was a man with a modest yet irresistible charisma. A small priest who made me fall in love with Africa. I wonder what he would say about this world drifting away. Africa, once seen as the guilty conscience of colonial Europe, is now ignored.”

“The encounter with CUAMM was one of the most important of my life. This summer I returned to Africa with CUAMM, in the Central African Republic. There was a moment I will never forget: at a crossroads between two dirt roads, in total darkness, Enzo Pisani – CUAMM Doctor asked me: ‘You here — what did you come for?’ And I replied: ‘Because I have to.’ Thinking back on that answer, I realized it contained all the motivations everyone feels: it moves me deeply, as if it were a calling, a hand on my shoulder. But there is also something tied to an inevitable and difficult destiny, linked to the guilt of the privileged Western white man. All these reasons contain great love and deep joy. Thanks to CUAMM, I have known the best part of our country,” said singer-songwriter Niccolò Fabi, a longtime friend of CUAMM.

Bringing Africa’s voice was Lelisa Amanuel Jira from the Ethiopian Ministry of Health:

“We asked CUAMM for help for the Nekemte hospital during an emergency situation. It is located in western Ethiopia, in the Oromia region, about 300 km from Addis Ababa. The hospital was built in 1932 and today serves one and a half million African citizens. Helping this center means supporting people’s health and well-being, ensuring safety for western Ethiopia, and contributing to the well-being of the entire country.”

Lelisa Amanuel Jira: Ministry of Health of Ethiopia

Don Dante Carraro, Director General of CUAMM took the stage with the representative of the Ethiopian Ministry of Health to announce a new compelling challenge:

“Last year, at the Annual Meeting in Turin, we launched a major challenge: building a School for Nurses and Midwives in Bossangoa, a rural area of the Central African Republic, 80 km from the capital. A few days ago, I was there and we inaugurated it together with the local authorities. It was a great celebration, a wonderful milestone. Next week, the first 30 Central African students will begin their lessons — the beginning of a new future for each of them. But Africa is vast and the needs that call to us are many. The challenge we embrace and relaunch for 2026 is called Nekemte, in Ethiopia. An area that has welcomed nearly 150,000 displaced people. A collapsing health system, an overflowing hospital, a crumbling facility. This is where we want to help and do our part. And this is the commitment we present to the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, and to all of Italy. It is our concrete way of giving shape to that ‘vertical continent’ that the President has often invited us to imagine and dream. Thank you to all who will join us!”

Closing the intense morning were the words of the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella:

“A warm greeting to the institutional representatives present. A greeting to those here from Ethiopia and Mozambique, and to everyone in attendance. We are here to celebrate CUAMM’s 75 years: a joyful anniversary not only for the value of this endeavor, but also for Padua and for all who have received your care and been trained in your schools. Seventy-five years of community-building in disadvantaged territories of Africa are a value for all of Italy, of which you are extraordinary ambassadors. What CUAMM stands for, in countering wars and conflicts fueled by fear, has great meaning. Your work sends a message of encouragement and challenge, because all are called to build peace, friendship, cooperation. Seventy-five years ago, CUAMM’s story began with its founders, Francesco Canova and Bishop Girolamo Bortignon. Sub-Saharan African countries were still under colonial rule, and in Italy no legal framework for cooperation existed. CUAMM became a pioneer: the challenge was great and the project ambitious, but the energy and tenacity of Don Luigi Mazzucato made the founders’ dream possible, and ten years after his death we remember him with growing affection. He used to say that friendship and community spirit keep CUAMM’s engine running — an engine that has enabled it to navigate decades of change. Every step forward has been anticipated and envisioned through the generosity of CUAMM’s doctors, supporters, and staff. Today more than ever, the future of the two continents and their peoples is increasingly interconnected, and the Mattei Plan is a step toward this cooperation. Solidarity is the antidote to indifference, and CUAMM was the first Italian NGO recognized in the health sector. That law was signed by Aldo Moro, who as a young man said it was important ‘to hunger and thirst for justice’. This is what the women and men of CUAMM teach us — to nurture awareness of the inviolable dignity and respect owed to every person.”

Sergio Mattarella, President of the Italian Republic

BROWSE THE GALLERY

Photo credits: Visual Crew

The Annual Meeting was held under the patronage of: Veneto Region, Municipality of Padua, National Federation of the Orders of Surgeons and Dentists, National Federation of Midwifery Orders.

Media Partners: Rai Radio 2, TV2000, Radio In Blu, Gruppo 24 Ore, Avvenire, Corriere Buone Notizie, Corriere del Veneto, Mattino di Padova, Nuova Venezia, Tribuna di Treviso, Corriere delle Alpi, Radio Vaticana, Vatican News, L’Osservatore Romano, La Difesa del Popolo, Africa Rivista.

In collaboration with: Caffè Diemme, Coldiretti, Trenitalia, Pasticceria Loison, Grafiche Pizzinato, Henoto, Target 2, Back Space, Padova Hall. With the support of: Fondazione Cariparo, Eni, Intesa San Paolo, Poste Italiane, FemoGas, Alì, Chamber of Commerce, Padova Looking and Venicepromex, Banca Etica.

Technical sponsors: CUAMM is a member of Link 2007.

Annual Meeting 2024 Health First

Posted on Novembre 18, 2024Luglio 28, 2026 by Redazione Cuamm

PHOTOGALLERY

Over 1,800 people from across Italy gathered in the Giovanni Agnelli Auditorium at Lingotto in Turin for the Annual Meeting of Doctors with Africa CUAMM. “Health First. For Everyone’s Future” was the theme of this event, now in its 14th edition.

After an intense monologue by Neri Marcorè, who performed Giorgio Gaber’s “La Paura” (Fear), the audience was guided by the graceful hosting of Paola Saluzzi on a captivating journey. This journey featured video testimonies from Africa and live voices on stage, creating an emotional crescendo of stories from the field.

**Paola Saluzzi,** Annual Meeting Host and Journalist at TV2000

Alberto Cirio, President of the Piedmont Region: «The first word I want to say is ‘Thank you.’ To Don Dante Carraro and everyone, for choosing Turin and Piedmont, a land of culture and values rooted in solidarity. Your presence here is meaningful».

Michela Favaro, Deputy Mayor of Turin: «I am glad to greet you all, on behalf of the city and the mayor. Turin has a long tradition of solidarity and continues with a strong international vocation. We are happy that so many doctors and health workers dedicate themselves to this bridge of hope for the world».

**Alberto Mantovani**, Scientific Director of Humanitas (on the right) and **Guido Forni**, Immunologist, Accademia dei Lincei

Alberto Mantovani, Scientific Director of Humanitas referring to the award presented to CUAMM by the Accademia dei Lincei in late June, said: «Serving this cause means working ‘with.’ The participation and enthusiasm for this award highlight CUAMM’s virtuous triangle of medicine: assistance, particularly for children and at-risk mothers, training young professionals, and operational research. This triangle brings extraordinary hope. We give something and return home with even more hope».

Guido Forni, Immunologist, Accademia dei Lincei: «Spurred by Alberto Mantovani, a group of immunologists wrote a book to demonstrate the importance of vaccines. The proceeds will go to CUAMM, and I am proud to be part of this beautiful initiative».

Antonio Tajani, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation: «We must look at Africa through African lenses, valuing its richness without neocolonizing, providing meaningful responses. Thank you for being an operational reference point for Italian Cooperation. We must do more to prevent children from dying before age two or mothers losing their lives during childbirth. This is the foundation of the Mattei Plan, a ‘win-win’ strategy to foster friendship and investment in the continent».

**Alberto Anfossi**, Secretary General of the Compagnia di San Paolo Foundation (on the right) and **Don Gabriele Pipinato**, CEI

Alberto Anfossi, Secretary General of the Compagnia di San Paolo Foundation: «Italian banking foundations work locally, but we all feel the need to act on a national level as well. Cooperation leads us to select projects and partners that can truly make a difference».

Don Gabriele Pipinato, CEI: «Last Saturday, I celebrated a 25-year project started with CUAMM, which continues to this day. I recently visited Wolisso, where CUAMM is doing exceptional work as a driving force generating new energy».

**Fabio Manenti,** Head of Project Department and **Chiara Maretti,** midwife and Country Representative in South Sudan

The Meeting, as every year, was an opportunity to present data from the extensive program “Mothers and Children First”, explained by Fabio Manenti, Head of Project Department at CUAMM. In its third year, the program supported 101,132 assisted births across eight sub-Saharan African countries where CUAMM operates; 817,916 prenatal visits were conducted; 3,804 malnourished children were treated, and 340 local health managers were trained.

Chiara Maretti, midwife and Country Representative in South Sudan, shared her field experience: «South Sudan is one of the poorest countries, yet it demonstrates incredible resilience. It’s an overused term, but if any population deserves it, it’s South Sudan. Since gaining independence in 2011, the country has faced unrelenting challenges, with extraordinarily high maternal mortality rates. At CUAMM, we support midwifery schools, and witnessing these young, future colleagues attending classes and preparing to help their country gives me joy amid the daily struggles».

Daguma Dereje, Ethiopia’s Deputy Minister of Health, highlighted: «The Ethiopian government has been collaborating with CUAMM for many years in a true partnership. Our healthcare system faces three main challenges: maternal and child mortality exacerbated by poverty, lack of equipment and medicine, communicable and other diseases such as cancer, and a third set of challenges posed by malaria, cholera, and similar disases».

**Daguma Dereje**, Ethiopia’s Deputy Minister of Health (on the right); **Getachew Reda**, President of the Tigray region in Ethiopia (in the middle) and **Agostino Palese**, Italian Ambassador in Ethiopia (on the left)

Getachew Reda, President of the Tigray region in Ethiopia, remarked: «The past three years of war have devastated infrastructure and more. We don’t just need to rehabilitate hospitals, on the contrary we need to rebuild the entire system. Guns have gone silent, but thousands live in extreme vulnerability without any services. CUAMM supports us in this. Above all, what matters now is peace».

Agostino Palese, Italian Ambassador to Ethiopia, emphasized: «In the past year, we have invested in what seemed impossible. Our priorities are threefold: healthcare, education, and employment. It’s not about optimism or pessimism, but about working with commitment every day and believing in what we do. We are fostering a paradigm shift, moving from aid to development as a right».

Franca Fagioli, Director of the Pediatrics Specialty School, University of Turin, said: «I believe the JPO program for residents is strategic even for our national territory. It is crucial for developing doctors capable of operating in global, multidisciplinary contexts. These doctors treat patients without or with minimal technology, adapt to diverse cultural settings, and become assets for both host country, themselves, and our national healthcare system».

**Franca Fagioli**, Director of the Pediatrics Specialty School, University of Turin (in the middle) and **Elena Altieri**, CUAMM Doctor (on the left)

Elena Altieri, CUAMM pediatrician shared: «Every day in my work in Italy, I draw from my experience as a resident in Tanzania and as a specialist in Mozambique. In Africa, I learned clinical practice by talking to patients, using my heart and hands. There, we learn to use our hands, minds, and a frugal approach to medicine effectively».

Journalist Diamante D’Alessio commented: «Thanks to Massimo Carraro of Morellato, I stumbled upon CUAMM, and from there, my commitment grew to give voice to the remarkable work of doctors on the ground».

**Antonio Biasiucci**, photographer; **Diamante D’Alessio**, journalist (on the left) and **Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo**, President of the Sandretto Re Rebaudengo Foundation

Photographer Antonio Biasiucci reflected: «CUAMM’s mission is truly contagious. I often work with metaphors; I could have done this project without going to Uganda, but I felt involved and chose to visit a delivery room in Matany with CUAMM. It was incredibly challenging. Pointing a camera at a woman in labor, possibly delivering a stillborn child, is not easy. It’s an experience I’ll always remember».

Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, President of the Sandretto Re Rebaudengo Foundation, shared: «Art and culture play a role in raising awareness and attention on critical causes like CUAMM’s. Art serves aesthetic, political, and social functions. It can align with significant causes to support and help raise funds. We’re launching a new project with CUAMM to send artists to Africa, who will sell their work to support CUAMM».

**Giuseppe Ferro**, President of CUAMM volunteering groups; **Nicola Penzo**, CUAMM Fundraising Department; **Simona Sala**, Director of Radio Rai 2

Simona Sala, Director of Radio Rai 2, proposed: «Good deeds rarely make the news. Talking about the positive is challenging. Today’s conflicts risk further overshadowing Africa. That’s why I’d like to propose an idea for us all to work on next year: 2025 marks the 40th anniversary of Bob Geldof’s Live Aid. Organizing a major concert to raise awareness on Africa would be magnificent».

Serge Boni, Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics and Advisor to the Minister of Health, Ivory Coast, noted: «Ivory Coast is fortunate to have a good neonatal and maternal health system, but significant challenges remain in many regions. The maternal mortality rate is far from Europe’s. Our country aspires to reduce this rate because the greatest injustice is a woman dying while giving life. We are grateful for CUAMM’s support».

**Ehouman Serge Boni**, Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics and Advisor to the Minister of Health, Ivory Coast (on the right) and Giovanni Putoto, CUAMM Head of program and operational research

Giovanni Putoto, CUAMM Head of program and operational research revealed: «CUAMM is launching a new project at the Abobo hospital in Abidjan. Together with the University of Padua, we will double maternity support, establish a neonatal unit, and ensure essential services like a blood bank. This critical endeavor will focus on research and study».

Andrea Malaguti, Editor-in-Chief of La Stampa, interviewed Romano Prodi about Africa and the Mattei Plan, asking if this intervention is enough and where Europe falls short. Romano Prodi, President of the Foundation for Worldwide Cooperation, responded: «The Mattei Plan won’t be sufficient. Africa is immeasurably larger than Italy and Europe. While Europe is the continent’s largest donor, it wields no influence, which is a major issue. In contrast, China has diplomatic ties with 54 of Africa’s 55 countries and operates systemically. Europe provides fragmented, short-term aid. CUAMM’s distinguishing strength is its decades-long, continuous presence».

**Andrea Malaguti**, Editor-in-Chief of La Stampa and **Romano Prodi**, President of the Foundation for Worldwide Cooperation

Don Dante Carraro, CUAMM Director, closed the event with a call to support a new training center in Bossangoa, Central African Republic: «At the request of the local Ministry of Health, we aim to establish this center in one of the poorest areas, building on our successful maternity project there. The cost is 1 million, but we are confident we can achieve this with everyone’s help».

**Don Dante Carraro**, CUAMM Director General

The Annual Meeting will be aired on TV2000, Channel 28, on Saturday, November 23, at 4:00 PM.

The ANNUAL MEETING is under the patronage of: Regione Piemonte, Municipality of Turin, University of Turin, the National Federation of the Orders of Physicians and Dentists, and the National Federation of Midwifery Orders.

In collaboration with: Intesa Sanpaolo, Gilead.

Technical sponsors: Lavazza, Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Coldiretti Piemonte. Cuamm is a member of Link 2007.

Media partners: Rai Radio 1, Rai Radio 2, Gruppo 24 Ore, Tv2000, Radio InBlu, Avvenire, La Stampa, Radio Vaticana, Vatican News, L’Osservatore Romano, Africa Rivista.

PRIMA LE MAMME E I BAMBINI is a program in collaboration with Fondazione Cariparo, Fondazione Cariverona, Fondazione Cariplo, Compagnia di San Paolo, Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Lucca.

Thanks to: Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Bologna, Fondazione del Monte di Bologna e Ravenna, Fondazione CR Firenze, Fondazione Cassa dei Risparmi di Forlì, Fondazione Friuli, Fondazione di Sardegna, Fondazione con il Sud, Fondazione CRT.

Photo credits: Margherita Borsano

CPHIA CUAMM SIDE EVENT

Posted on Novembre 13, 2023Luglio 28, 2026 by Redazione Cuamm

The annual International Conference on Public Health in Africa (CPHIA) is organised by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and provides a unique African-led platform for leaders across the continent to reflect on lessons learned in health and science, and align on a way forward for creating more resilient health systems.

CPHIA 2023 is the third edition of the conference, which was held virtually in 2021 and in-person in Kigali, Rwanda, in 2022. This year, CPHIA will be hosted by the Zambian Ministry of Health and takes place 27-30 November in Lusaka, Zambia, under the theme “Breaking Barriers: Repositioning Africa in the Global Health Architecture” – a theme that will be explored across nine plenary sessions, several parallel and abstract sessions and dozens of official side events.

CUAMM will host its own virtual side event on November 22nd at 6 pm (CAT) via Zoom Meeting under the theme Operational research and civil society contributions to enhance Universal Health Coverage: the experience of Doctors with Africa CUAMM. Among the panelists: CUAMM experts and University professors from both Italy, Ethiopia and Uganda as well as partners, namely UNICEF Mozambique and collaborators from two African Universities namely Mekerere University, Uganda and Catholic University of Mozambique. The speakers will take the floor to explore the relationship between operational research and civil society engagement in enhancing universal health coverage and navigate the long-term experience of Doctors with Africa CUAMM who has been working for over 70 years for the promotion of the global right to health in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The event aims to reach individuals from academic and government institutions; national, regional, community and faith-based organizations; private sector firms; as well as researchers, front-line health workers and advocates. Anyone, however, is welcome to participate in the conference.

Building on the previous year’s convenings, CPHIA 2023 will showcase how the continent is breaking down barriers, reaffirming Africa as a powerhouse in science and innovation, generator of new knowledge and health products, and exemplar of progress.

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