MSF highlights refugee crisis in South Sudan
Thousands of refugees in South Sudan are at risk of dying from dehydration, malnutrition and other preventable illnesses, according to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).
Speaking at an information evening in Dublin recently, MSF Ireland head Jane-Ann McKenna called for greater support for humanitarian relief efforts in the year-old state.
“The biggest challenge we now face is improving the conditions within refugee camps,” said McKenna, who has just returned from a three-week visit to the Jamam refugee camp in South Sudan.
“These camps have sprung up on inhospitable tracts of land, with no infrastructure or services. They are highly exposed to the elements and prone to flooding. There are pools of stagnant water everywhere, while fresh water and food are in scant supply.”
She added: “The camps are completely unable to cope with their existing populations. And yet, new refugees are arriving every day.”
According to McKenna, more than 100,000 people “have fled conflict in the Blue Nile State in recent months, and have come across the border into South Sudan.
“After walking for weeks – and in some cases months – they are now arriving to refugee camps that are overcrowded, flooded and without basic supplies.
“So having survived an arduous journey, refugees are dying from dehydration and other preventable illnesses. The children in the camps are suffering from severe malnutrition.”
McKenna said a “humanitarian crisis is unfolding” in South Sudan. “And unless the situation in the refugee camps can be improved in the immediate future, we will witness more and more preventable deaths over the coming weeks ”
A preliminary mortality survey recently conducted by MSF at the refugee camps in South Sudan found that nearly nine children were dying every day, a mortality rate high above what is usually considered an emergency threshold.
“I am appealing to the people of Ireland to support our humanitarian relief efforts in South Sudan,” said McKenna. “We need to ensure there are better resources and conditions in place for refugees who arrive at the camps.
“We need to ensure we have the capacity to address preventable diseases and to offer those who have been forced to flee their homes a real chance of survival once they arrive at the camps.”
