The World Health Organization, (WHO) reports that it has delivered emergency medical supplies to two main Internally Displaced Peoples (IDP) camps in Borno State in north eastern Nigeria.
Where are the two camps located?
Mafa and Dikwa IDP camps, are located in the Boko Haram ravaged northeastern state of Borno. They fall within two of the 15 areas liberated this year and hosts more than 75,000 internally displaced persons (IDP).
What is contained in the kits?
The medical supplies are in form of Interagency Emergency Health Kit with enough drugs and medical supplies to treat 15,000 people for three months.
Malaria and Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) kits were also provided. The supplies will be distributed to the existing health facilities in each camp and to mobile teams.
Why the two particular IDP camps?
The selection of the two camps follows a United Nations joint assessment mission to Mafa and Dikwa which showed high Malaria and Acute Respiratory Tract Infections rates in the IDP camps, accounting for 33% and 16% respectively.
Patients with chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, cancer and other chronic illnesses were unable to access the needed life-saving essential medicines.
There is also a general limited access to health facilities due to their reduced functionality as a result of insecurity coupled with destruction of others.
WHO responds to critical health needs of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Mafa & Dikwa, Borno State, #Nigeria. https://t.co/Cp43CsiBnh pic.twitter.com/m9Mj0LxcFv
— WHO African Region (@WHOAFRO) October 6, 2016
WHO’s continued call for funding
In light of the humanitarian situation in Borno and other insurgency ravaged states, WHO is appealing for US$ 13.5 million to support health interventions until the end of 2016 out of which US $2 million has been received so far leaving a funding gap of 82%.
What Borno state rep and WHO country reps said
“Many of the IDP health facilities in the state are in need of such assistance and WHO’s supplies have therefore come in at the right time” said Dr Abubakar Hassan, Borno state government, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health said after receiving the supplies.
Acting WHO country Representative, Dr Rex Mpazanje said “WHO is committed to supporting the government of Borno state and other parts of the North East to continue to have access to health services including those in the hardest to access areas through the provision of emergency lifesaving medicines which currently are urgently needed.”
The Nigeria office of the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) recently confirmed that $1.3m worth of lifesaving supplies had arrived in Nigeria. The supplies are meant to be given to internally displaced people in the northeast, where Boko Haram insurgency has led to a humanitarian crisis.
