Establishing a private residential care centre

• Project location: Antondrachtenweg, North-West of Paramaribo, Suriname
• Consortium: Zonneburg BV, Elto NV
• Project budget: Euro 1.5 million
• External financing: 50% grant funding by PSOM
• Project period: July 2006 - June 2008

Abstract

Zonneburg BV provides tailor-made care and related services to elderly persons in selected residential care centres in the Netherlands and in Spain (branded as “RCR Health Centre”). With this project, Zonneburg will extend its successful residential care concept to Suriname, mainly to cater for the needs of elderly Surinamers remigrating from the Netherlands to Suriname.

In the 1970s, in view of independence, and later in the 1980s, following political turmoil and economic uncertainty, large numbers of Surinamers migrated to the Netherlands. Now, a rapidly growing group of the 325,000 Surinamers in the Netherlands is reaching the age at which they increasingly need care. However, the health care sector in the Netherlands is not very well adapted to meet the specific cultural and spiritual needs of the aging Surinamese. Part of the elderly Surinamers currently residing in the Netherlands have a strong preference to return to Suriname to spend the last period of their lives in Suriname in the vicinity of friends, relatives, and enjoying their own culture, food, music, language, climate, and so on but are wary of the quality and state of the local health care system and facilities.

The objective of this PSOM project is to establish a 32-room private care centre in Suriname, offering tailor-made care services to elderly Surinamers. Apart from the fact that elderly Surinamers currently residing in the Netherlands will be given the opportunity to receive the good healthcare in their native land, this development will result in significant (40%) cost savings. It should be noted that the residential care centre will be equally open to elderly people presently living in Suriname who will be able to benefit from high quality care.

Zonneburg will form a joint venture with turnkey contractor in electrical installations Elto N.V. from Suriname, and jointly invest in establishing a care centre for elderly people in Suriname. The facilities will include a medical centre, a nursing home, a day care centre and accommodation adapted for elderly people. Hardware investments include the development of a purpose-made building with special furniture and equipment. Technical assistance comprises intensive knowledge transfer through a training curriculum and educational training courses at different levels offered to local staff. To that end, care institute Stichting ContinU will bring in expertise in the field of health care training. KB Estate, a project developer in real estate, will provide technical assistance in the form of supervision of the construction activities. The investment partners have agreed with the Suriname authorities that these trainings will be aimed at increasing the capacity in health care in Suriname, rather than pulling away skilled personnel from other local health care providers.

Project results will be:

• business foundation through establishment of a joint venture
• residential care centre constructed with 32 apartments, furnished for accommodation, care and treatment of elderly Surinamers. The care centre will provide four different types of care and care related services
• 20 Surinamers trained in care-related issues for tailor-made assistance and treatment to elderly people. An additional 3 Surinamers are trained in care management and administration. Qualified trainees will be employed at the new residential care centre.
• development of a viable business along with a business plan for follow-on investments.

Direct labour at the care centre within the project period is 31. Follow-on investments will be in the construction of an additional wing to the residential care centre, resulting in doubling of the total capacity to 64 residential units. With attractive specialised treatments (e.g. ophthalmology, dentistry, and alternative forms of treatment), the care centre will develop into a multifunctional care complex in Paramaribo. Another spin-off investment is expected in the realisation of senior residential housing on a separate plot of 50 ha to further tap into the potentials of the health care tourism sector in Suriname.

Additional direct employment that will be created as a result of the follow-up investments in doubling capacity and realisation of senior residential housing, is estimated to be 30 and 60 respectively.