Médecins Sans Frontières works to assist the most vulnerable groups, including women, children and the huge numbers of refugees from conflicts in neighbouring countries.

In 2021, our teams responded to measles outbreaks in Mandoul, Ouaddaï, Moyen-Chari and Dar Sila regions. We subsequently transformed our intervention in Ouaddaï into a longer-term paediatric project, based in Adré, to address the lack of healthcare in the area and assist the increasing numbers of refugees from the conflict in Sudan’s West Darfur region.

Our emergency intervention providing care for severely malnourished children during the lean season in N’Djamena has also evolved into a programme to better meet the needs of families and children throughout the year. In September, we started a nutrition response in Massakory, Hadjer Lamis region, after receiving an alert about the high number of severely malnourished children in an area that was getting little support.

We also launched a community-based health programme in Dar Sila in the second half of the year. In Moissala, Mandoul region, we continued to work with the Ministry of Health to improve access to maternal and paediatric healthcare, and ran a seasonal malaria chemoprevention campaign to reduce the incidence of severe malaria during the rainy season.

Between August and December, we assisted thousands of people who had sought shelter in Chad following intercommunal clashes between Mousgoum fishermen and Arab herders in northern Cameroon. As well as medical consultations and hospital referrals, we provided water and essential provisions, such as blankets, to people living in dire conditions in informal sites around N’Djamena and Mandelia.

Our emergency team also responded to outbreaks of hepatitis E, storms in Tandjile, community violence in Am Timan and an influx of Central African refugees in Goré.