Seven MSF vaccination sites, where thousands of civilians had gathered, came under fire during attacks by the Congolese army against the Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda (FDLR) in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). MSF denounces this clearly unacceptable abuse of humanitarian aid for military purposes.
“We feel we were used as bait,” said Luis Encinas, head of MSF programmes in Central Africa. “The attacks coincided with the beginning of our vaccination and put the lives of civilians in extreme risk. Thousands of people, and the MSF teams, were trapped in the gunfire.
A retreat from international funding commitments for AIDS threatens to undermine the dramatic gains made in reducing AIDS-related illness and death in recent years, according to a new report by Médecins Sans Frontières (Download the report here). The MSF report highlights how expanding access to HIV treatment has not only saved the lives of people with AIDS but has been central to reducing overall mortality in a number of high HIV burden countries in southern Africa in recent years.
The most glaring sign of the decreasing political commitment to HIV/AIDS is a major funding deficit. The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria Board is considering a motion to cancel the funding round (Round 10) for 2010; if accepted, no new proposals will be considered until 2011. Similarly, the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) plans to “flat-fund” its programmes for the next two years, reneging on promises made last year to support expanded treatment access.
Natural disaster in southern Asia and the South Pacific. Cholera outbreak in Papua New Guinea. MSF has been authorized to continue its activities in Iraq. Nutritional emergency in the southwest of Central African Republic. Violence continues against civilians in Upper Uélé, DRC. Find out more...
“Some people had to flee with very few belongings and food, and they are scared so MSF has sent a team for immediate assistance,” said Christine Buesser, MSF Deputy-Head of Mission in Sudan.
MSF slide show - MSF provides psychosocial support to people traumatised by the earthquake, and group or individual consultations are carried out for both adults and children who need more support. MSF has also arranged community activities especially for children, including playing sports as a form of therapy and release, and provides training to mental health care workers from the Ministry of Health.
”When I look around in the village where I am standing, virtually every building has been destroyed,” said Simon Burroughs, MSF’s Emergency Coordinator in Andhra Pradesh. “This place was hit by three or four metres of flood water, so people didn’t just have their homes destroyed, they also lost all their possessions. They had to leave at a moment’s notice in order to escape. A lot of livelihood has been wrecked, fisherman’s nets have been swept away, farmers’ fields have been completely destroyed.”
Based on pictures taken by Javier Roldan Field Coordinator in his last trip to Somalia, an overview of MSF activities in Jamaame, through the eyes of MSF field coordinator and the voices of the Somali staff.
Jamaame hospital, with 55 beds, was opened in March 2007.
Located nearly 30 kms north of Kismayo, activities include nutrition, maternity, general medicine and emergency care.
AFTER A FIVE YEAR ABSENCE, MSF RETURNS TO AFGHANISTAN
MSF left Afghanistan in June, 2004 after the brutal killing of five of its staff in Badghis province. At that time, many had hopes that Afghanistan was on its way to recovery thanks to a major international investment in development aid. Today, that hope has been crushed. The need for emergency medical assistance has once again become acute.
MSF is not accepting funding from any government for its work in Afghanistan, but chooses to rely solely on private donations.
“We are committed to treating people with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis today and we are even piloting new community approaches. But we’re also facing up to the hard facts that we can’t treat TB properly with the drugs and diagnostics at our disposal and that means losing significant numbers of patients. That is why there is such an urgent need for European countries to mobilise more research activity on TB.” - said Dr. Christophe Fournier, President of MSF’s International Council
MSF treats wounded of most recent clash in Jonglei state, southern Sudan
To date, a total of 43 wounded have arrived at the MSF clinic in Pieri. Those who were fortunate were brought by family members on makeshift stretchers, other came on foot, travelling for hours and in some cases days. The wounds ranged in severity from superficial skin wounds to bone fractures and gunshot wounds in the chest and abdomen.
MSF provides assistance to victims of violence in Conakry, Guinea
MSF staff assisting Donka hospital's personnel report that most of the wounded had received gun shot wounds or been attacked with knives. Four women seen by MSF also reported having been raped.
MSF responds to serious kala azar outbreak in southern Sudan
“We suspect that the number of kala azar patients reaching clinics in some areas is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Dr. David Kidinda, MSF Medical Coordinator in southern Sudan. "With all the barriers facing people here - the severe lack of infrastructure, few proper roads, crippling absence of healthcare staff and structures and the current increase in violence and insecurity in the region – survival becomes a cruel obstacle course for those in need of life-saving treatment.” Find out more...
New people displaced by the armed conflict in the Nariño department, Colombia
“This situation is recurrent and has completely overwhelmed the authorities’ response capacity at all levels,” explained Ximena Di Lollo, head of activities in Nariño. “As a result, we find that we are quite alone when it comes to providing care to this population in the first moments.”
MSF-East DRC on Twitter
Robin Meldrum, from MSF, is tweeting directly from Congo where he is gathering material for the next part of the Condition: Critical project, focusing on wounds in DRC. Follow Robin on Twitter. Condition Critical blog:Read more...
Chagas: it's time to break the silence
Millions of people are infected with Chagas disease yet they do not know.
They can die in silence, without asking for help, without knowing why. An MSF specialty site focusing on Chagas
We take you to northern Nigeria, where MSF is providing surgery to repair fistulas – life-altering internal injuries that can happen to women who endure prolonged, complicated labor. In Burkina Faso, malnutrition is at its annual peak and MSF is responding.We’ll hear from an MSF doctor who was there at the same time last year. You’ll also hear emergency updates from MSF projects around the world.
Annual Reports
MSF International Activity Report - 2008 edition
Links to the MSF International Activity Report including a PDF file for download.
Koysha Shewkare – July 2008
A daily photo blog focusing on MSF field activities, with emphasis on the particularly creative, arresting and visually engaging images. See more...
