The opening marks one of the main achievements of the project “Health Within Everyone’s Reach: Improving Access to Healthcare and Basic Health Services for Mothers, Children, and People Living with Chronic Diseases”, funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) and implemented by the DREAM Program of the Community of Sant’Egidio, in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health of the Central African Republic.

The new Pavilion, created through collaboration between the Ministry of Health and the DREAM Program, has been recognized as the National Reference Center for Epilepsy. This represents a decisive step forward in strengthening the national health system and expanding the range of services dedicated to neurological diseases, with particular focus on epilepsy.

The facility, fully equipped with high-quality materials, was made possible thanks to the support of the MSC Foundation and Messina S.r.l., which ensured the transport of the equipment in two shipping containers.

The activities now underway include diagnosis, therapeutic management, and rehabilitation of patients, along with healthcare personnel training and awareness-raising initiatives for the community. The center features specialized outpatient clinics, diagnostic laboratories, and welcoming spaces for patients and their families — offering an integrated and entirely free model of care.

The initiative stems from years of collaboration between the DREAM Program, the Italian Society of Neurology, the Carlo Besta Neurological Institute of Milan, and Italian neurologists, who regularly carry out training and professional development activities in Bangui.

This joint effort has made it possible to establish a center of excellence capable of addressing a major public health need in the Central African Republic, where epilepsy remains one of the most widespread yet least treated chronic diseases.