The Nation Newspaper

Tag: MSF

  • Borno: 33 children die in IDP camp in 13-days

    Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), a non-governmental organisation, has said said 33 children have died in a Borno State Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp between 2 and 15 August.

    MSF in a report released on Friday said since April 2018, more than 10,000 people have arrived in a Bama camp, with many in poor health.

    According to the report, a critical humanitarian situation is unfolding in the camp as the Bama Government Science Secondary School (GSSS) camp intended for a maximum of 25,000 people has reached capacity at the end of July.

    “Lack of adequate assistance, including access to shelter and healthcare, is having severe consequences for young children arriving in the town. MSF calls on authorities to urgently provide adequate assistance for the population, before the situation deteriorates further”.

    “Since April 2018, more than 10,000 people have arrived in the Government Science Secondary School (GSSS) camp in the town; many are in poor health. Newly displaced people reported fleeing areas where they were unable to sustain their livelihoods, while others reported fleeing areas where the Nigerian armed forces are conducting military operations against armed groups.

    “In the GSSS camp, shelter and healthcare assistance has not kept pace with the growing population and people continue to arrive every day with not enough shelters for everyone”.

    Katja Lorenz, MSF’s representative in Abuja was quoted in the report to have said over 6,000 people currently sleep in the open with no protection from the heat, rains and mosquitoes.

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    “People do not even have basic utensils to cook their dry food rations, and water is not available in adequate quantities to meet the minimum needs. A lot of children are already in a critical state upon arrival, and poor assistance and access to healthcare further deteriorates their condition” she said.

    “Between 2 and 15 August, MSF teams reported that 33 young children had died in the camp. This figure is alarmingly high in relation to the total number of children under five years old, which is estimated to be around 6,000”.

    The organisation also said non-availability of medical facilities is hampering the treatment of sick children.

    Lorenz further said despite the presence of government agencies and international humanitarian organisations in Bama, the health and nutrition situation has been allowed to deteriorate up to the current crisis point.

    “Many children are severely malnourished and suffer from medical complications – they urgently need intensive care and close medical follow-up, as the current rainy season typically sees a spike in the number of patients with malaria and diarrhoeal diseases. The lack of an inpatient nutrition and paediatric health facility in Bama is having catastrophic consequences for children”.

    “At present, the only hospital in Bama, the Bama General Hospital, is not functional. Seriously ill children have to travel to Maiduguri for further treatment. However, many people in Bama cannot afford to pay for private transport to take them to the state capital. And even if they can, inpatient nutritional centres are overwhelmed. While setting up an inpatient facility in Bama, between 1 and 12 August MSF had to refer 26 patients to its own paediatric hospital in Maiduguri”.

    “Measures must be urgently taken to avoid overcrowding and ensure dignified living conditions in the GSSS camp. Secondary and emergency healthcare for both IDPs and the resident population must be scaled up as quickly as possible”.

    “On 16 August, MSF launched inpatient services for severely malnourished children under five years old, as well as paediatric care for patients under 15 with severe malaria and other diseases, in a facility with a capacity of 30 beds”.

    “This is only a short-term response to the critical humanitarian situation in Bama, until the level of assistance is scaled up. MSF is calling on authorities to urgently address humanitarian needs before the situation deteriorates further”.

     

  • MSF scales up cholera activities in Borno

    MSF scales up cholera activities in Borno

    The Medecins Sans Frontiers (MSF), a medical humanitarian organisation, said on Saturday it has scale up activities to control cholera outbreak in Borno.

    The MSF said it was working in collaboration with the state Ministry of Health and other organizations to curtail the spread of the disease.

    MSF’s Medical Coordinator, Anna Cilliers, told journalists in Maiduguri that the organization had set up two Cholera Treatment Units (CTU) and an Oral Dehydration Point (ODP) in Maiduguri and Monguno local government areas of the state.

    Cilliers disclosed that a 100-bed capacity centre was set up at Dala area of Maiduguri and an ODP at Muna Garage Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camp.

    A 40-bed capacity treatment centre was also set up at Monguno.

    Cilliers said: “About 312 patients have so far admitted at the Dala centre and 194 persons discharged. Nine others died of the disease.

    “About 135 health personnel were deployed for case management of the disease at the Dala centre.

    “The organisation also set up an Oral Rehydration Point (ORP) at Muna camp. A team of Community Health Workers (CHW) is helping with disease monitoring and surveillance in the affected communities.”

    NAN

  • Cholera kills seven, 200 admitted in Borno

    Cholera kills seven, 200 admitted in Borno

    Medicine San Frontières (MSF) has recorded seven deaths since the outbreak of Cholera in Maiduguri, Borno State capital.
    MSF Medical Coordinator Anna Cillers while giving the update of the situation to joirnalissts in Maiduguri informed that over 50 patients were received  at MSF’s Cholera Treatment Unit at Dala.
    Dr. Cillers added that “the  total number of patients admitted from the start of the outbreak till now is over 200 with 100 discharges and7 deaths”.
    MSF on Wednesday reported many scale up measures  as part of efforts to prevent further deaths and the spread of cholera in Maiduguri.
    It  said that it was  working in coordination with the Borno State Ministry of Health (MoH) and other organisations that are responding to the outbreak in the city.
    The statemental disclosed that MSF has established a 40 bed Cholera Treatment Unit (CTU) in Dala, which as at then admitted 70 patients.
     The organisation had also set up an Oral Rehydration Point (ORP) in Muna camp and has a team of 14 Community Health Workers (CHW) who are helping to find new cases and trace community members who may have come into contact with affected patients.

    The statement said  majority of cholera patients come from Muna Garage IDP  camp.

    “MSF has rapidly been responding to the cholera outbreak in Maiduguri. We set up a Cholera Treatment Unit in Dala earlier this year in anticipation of a potential outbreak. Since last weekend, we have witnessed a steady increase in the number of patients at our treatment centre and at the rehydration point in Muna camp,” said Anne-Cecile Niard, MSF Project Coordinator.
     She added, “We are in the process of expanding the capacity of our treatment centre in Dala to 50 beds and are exploring the possibility of opening another treatment centre close to the most affected areas. We are worried that the number of beds that are currently planned will not be enough to cope at the peak of the outbreak.

    “With early diagnosis and treatment, people have a very good chance of survival; already 37 patients have been discharged from our treatment centre in Dala,” said Anna Cillers, MSF Medical Coordinator.

     “If people are worried that they have cholera, they should drink oral rehydration solution and seek treatment as quickly as possible. However, to contain the spread of cholera in Maiduguri, the need for a coordinated response from state health authorities and the other responders to this outbreak cannot be overstated.”

  • MSF staff released from South Sudan prison

    Six employees of medical charity — Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors without Borders) — have been released after being detained for three months in South Sudan, the charity and the army said on Monday.

    The organisation said in a statement that “the MSF workers were arrested by the army while on duty.

    It stated that two were released on January 27 and four others on March 31.

    Army Spokesman Santo Domic said the MSF employees were detained in Yei River state in the south-west on charges of smuggling weapons to anti-government rebels.

    However, MSF denied the accusation.

    Government Spokesman, Michael Makuei, said the aid workers were released on humanitarian grounds and because the army could not try civilians.

    Brice de le Vingne, the Director of Operations for MSF, said “we are concerned about this incident and we are relieved that our colleagues, who were working hard to bring healthcare to people in need, have now been released.

    “They can now return to their families.”

    Aid workers often complain about difficulties of working in South Sudan.

    The United Nations said 79 aid workers were killed in the country since civil conflict erupted between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar in December 2013.

    Thousands were killed in the conflict, while 3.4 million people were displaced and about 100,000 facing famine.

    NAN

     

  • IDP camp bombing death toll hits 90

    The death toll from an accidental Nigerian air strike on a  Internally Displaced People (IDP) camp in the town of Rann, Borno, has risen to around 90 people, and could be as high as 170, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said in a statement on Friday.

    Tuesday’s strike on the northeastern town, which had Boko Haram militants as its target, has led to an investigation by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF).

    The inquiry’s report is due to be submitted no later than February 2, Reuters reported.

    The aid group, also known as Doctors Without Borders, said the higher figure of 170 comes from reports from residents and community leaders.

    “This figure needs to be confirmed,” Reuters quoted Bruno Jochum, MSF General Director, as saying in the statement.

    “The victims of this horrifying event deserve a transparent account of what happened and the circumstances in which this attack took place.”

    “A Nigerian Air Force plane circled twice and dropped two bombs in the middle of the town of Rann, which hosts thousands of internally displaced people,” MSF said.

    “At the time of the attack, an aid distribution was taking place.”

    On Thursday, Human Rights Watch said the strike had destroyed 35 structures, and hit 100 metres from what appears to be a Nigerian military compound, raising questions about why precautions were not taken to avoid harming civilians.

  • NAF Jet bombardment: MSF confirms 52 killed, 120 injured

    NAF Jet bombardment: MSF confirms 52 killed, 120 injured

    Medicine San Frontiers,(MSF), one of the humanitarian aid group said to have been affected in the accidental bombing by  Airforce fighter jet that killed  civilians in Rann, Borno State have condemned in strong terms the action that led to the unfortunate incident.

    MSF have also confirmed that 52 people were killed in the incident with 120 wounded so far.

    In a statement issued by  Dr. Dr Jean-Clément Cabrol, MSF Director of Operations said the bombing hit an IDP camp in Rann, while describing
    the attack as “unacceptable”

    “This large-scale attack on vulnerable people who have already fled from extreme violence is shocking and unacceptable.

    “The safety of civilians must be respected. We are urgently calling on all parties to ensure the facilitation of medical evacuations by air
    or road for survivors who are in need of emergency care,” the statement said.

    Dr. Cabrol said  “MSF medical teams are currently providing first aid to 120 wounded patients in its facility in Rann. 50 people have so far
    been confirmed dead.  The organisation’s medical and surgical teams in the region are preparing to treat evacuated patients”.

  • MSF urges support for IDPs

    The Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) also called Doctors without Borders, on Friday appealed to the international community and donor agencies to provide support to hundreds of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Borno.

    The Head of MSF Emergency Response, Mr. Hugues Robert, said in a statement in Maiduguri that the humanitarian emergency in the Northeast was reaching catastrophic levels.

    He said a massive relief effort was needed immediately in remote areas as well as in the state capital.

    “The desperate living conditions in Borno show the devastating impact of the ongoing conflict between Boko Haram terrorists and the Nigerian military,” the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quoted the MSF official as saying in the statement.

    “In several locations, people have sought refuge in towns or camps controlled by the military, and are entirely reliant on outside aid that does not reach them.

    “Although a nutrition emergency was declared three months ago, there has been a serious failure to help the people of Borno.

    “We are again calling for a massive relief effort to be deployed now.”

  • Boko Haram: Borno humanitarian crisis catastrophic – MSF

    Doctors without Borders otherwise known as Medicine Sans Frontieres (MSF) have drawn the world’s attention to the humanitarian crisis in Northeast Nigeria and Borno State in particular, concluding that the situation has reached a catastrophic level.

    A statement released on Wednesday by the Interim Emergency Field Communication Manager for Nigeria, Mr. Tim Shenk, said “a massive relief effort is needed immediately in remote areas as well as in the state capital, Maiduguri,” adding that the situation in the state capital is as bad as some of the conflict areas caught up in the crisis.

    MSF regretted that despite the nutrition emergency declared by the Federal Government in Borno State, many people are still without food and medicare and imminent death threatening the lives of children due to acute malnutrition in those communities.

    “The desperate living conditions in Borno State show the devastating impact of the ongoing conflict between Boko Haram and the Nigerian military. In several locations, people have sought refuge in towns or camps controlled by the military, and are entirely reliant on outside aid that does not reach them.

    “Although a nutrition emergency was declared three months ago, there has been a serious failure to help the people of Borno.

    “And we are again calling for a massive relief effort to be deployed now,”  said Hugues Robert, Head of MSF’s Emergency Response.

     

  • MSF raises famine alarm in Nigeria’s northeast

    Severely malnourished children are dying in large numbers in northeast Nigeria, the former stronghold of Boko Haram militants where food supplies are close to running out, Medecins Sans Frontieres said on Wednesday.

    The medical charity, also known as Doctors Without Borders, urged the United Nations to set up emergency food transports to the area, where up to 800,000 civilians have been cut off for over a year.

    “The situation is a large-scale humanitarian disaster. There is a vital need to have a food pipeline in place to save the population that can be saved,” Reuters quoted MSF general director, Bruno Jochum, at a news briefing on Wednesday.

    “We are talking at least about pockets of what is close to a famine.”

    Under military escort, a MSF team delivered some 40 metric tonnes of food last week to Banki, a town of 12,000 near the Cameroon border, including emergency supplies for more than 4,000 children.

    It vaccinated children against measles, which can be deadly in under-fives.

    The UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) also delivered 30 metric tonnes of food and other items there last week, in a cross-border operation from Cameroon.

    The UN said three million people in the northeast are in urgent need of food aid, adding that some roads within Nigeria are unsafe for convoys due to mines.

    “It is a situation of complete destitution, with hardly anything to eat,” said MSF emergency programme director, Hugues Robert, who was part of the team in Banki. “What is extremely shocking is the level of severe acute malnutrition.”

  • IDPs: Shettima visits Aso Rock

    IDPs: Shettima visits Aso Rock

    The Presidency on Wednesday summoned the Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima, over reported deaths and malnutrition among children at Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in the state.

    Doctors Without Borders- (Médecins Sans Frontières), an international humanitarian aid organization had last week released a statement and photographs, stating that about 24,000 IDPs were in dire health situation with at least 30 people, mostly children dying every day.

    President Muhammadu Buhari, according to sources, was angry over the report despite billions of naira being spent by the different levels of government and donor agencies and philanthropists on the IDPs.

    Shettima was sighted coming out from the office of the Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, at the Presidential Villa.

    When approached by journalists for comments on the allegations and why he was at the seat of power, the governor declined comments, saying it was a private visit.