On 12 July 2008, Caribbean Airlines, Ltd., aided in another first for the Caribbean –- Guyana’s first kidney transplant.

As his mother was desperately trying to raise funds to send 18-year-old Munesh Mangal to Indiafor kidney transplant surgery, Munesh’s situation caught the attention of Guyanesephilanthropist George Subraj. Subraj, who lives in New York City, gathered together a team tomake the operation a reality and contacted Caribbean Airlines for assistance in transporting theAmerican-based doctors who would be performing the landmark surgery.

Caribbean Airlines provided complimentary air transportation from New York to Guyana forseven doctors and nurses.

“Caribbean Airlines is extremely pleased to have a part in this history-making endeavor is toimprove the life of one of our Caribbean citizens and further develop medical programmes inthe region,” said Caribbean Airlines CEO Philip Saunders. “Providing reliable, full-service airtransportation is our business but serving as a community partner is our heart.”

Caribbean Airlines, and other contributors, were honored at a special ceremony hosted bySubraj on 14 July 2008 for their generousity. In separate ceremonies, the airline also wasrecognized by the President of Guyana Bharrat Jagdeo, Speaker of the National Assembly RalphRamkarran, Guyana Minister of Health Leslie Ramsammy, and Mayor of Georgetown HamiltonGreene."

This was a ground–breaking event and lifted our hopes for bringing more and better healthcare for the Guyanese people,” said Minister Ramsammy. “We are proud that CaribbeanAirlines demonstrated a commitment to be a part of the exciting developments in the localhealth sector."

Munesh Munesh was diagnosed with End Stage Renal Failure in 2007. His mother, LeelkumarieNirananjan Mangal, efforts to aid her son began with working tirelessly to pay for dialysistreatment and tests, then trying to raise USD $36,000 for her son to travel to India for thesurgery, but her ultimate gift was the kidney that she donated to her only son.

After months of planning, the medical team for Guyana’s first kidney transplant performed themilestone procedure at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation on 12 July 2008. Muneshand his mother currently are recovering well. Guyana health official state that by observingand assisting with this first kidney transplant operation, and after additional training, localdoctors will be able to perform the surgery without oversees assistance – a great progressivestep for regional medicine.