MOAS’ Sudan medical Aid Delivery project is intended to alleviate some of the repercussions from the ongoing dramatic conflict in the country and meet the essential medical needs of the affected population. Urgent action was required for vulnerable people and affected communities to access lifesaving humanitarian assistance and further build their resilience.
When hostilities broke out in Sudan in April 2023, MOAS decided to bring humanitarian assistance to the country through the experience and resources at its disposal in the field of aid delivery. The plan was to manage the collection of material and financial resources, ship several 40-foot reefers (Shipping containers), and deliver them through maritime transport to Port Sudan (South Sudan). The plan was to distribute the goods according to the population’s needs.
The ongoing armed conflict and widespread insecurity in the country have hampered the population’s access to essential services and humanitarian assistance. With all these compounding factors, over the years, the needs of these already vulnerable people living in regions along the conflict lines, as well as Internally Displaced Persons created by said conflict, have become even more pronounced.
The plan was two-fold, to send medical and pharmaceutical supplies in the form of the Unites Nation’s Interagency Health Kits (IEHK). These are standardised emergency medical supplies that are essential whenever a disaster strikes. As well as sending malnutrition relief supplements to address the growing food scarcity issues in the region. Our fundraising efforts started in the second quarter of 2023 and yielded the results we were hoping for. MOAS then brought together a small network of other voluntary and not for profit organisations to flesh out the practical and logistical elements of this mission.
We reached out to Edesia, our longstanding US partner and manufacturer of RUTF (Ready to Use Therapeutic Food), and the German Medical aid organisation Action Medeor. On the ground in Sudan, we are working with ADRA to receive and distribute the malnutrition supplements and UNHCR to coordinate the logistics associated with the IEHK kits.
The first two containers with RUTF supplies arrived in Port Sudan in late 2023, and distribution is expected to take place over 2024. From the latest reporting we have available, these supplies have already treated over 2000 people. We are pleased to report that there was so far a recovery rate of over 92% amongst the children treated who were suffering from severe acute malnourishment and a 100% recovery rate for the children treated who were diagnosed with moderately acute malnourishment.
The other half of this aid delivery initiative, consisting of an additional container carrying 48 Basic Interagency Emergency Health Kits together with 7 Supplementary Medicine Modules, arrived in Port Sudan at the end of July 2024. Distribution is currently ongoing. These supplies are expected to be used to treat 118,000 people over 3 months.
Final Thoughts
The success of this novel aid mission has prompted MOAS to re-ignite discussions again this year for a potential new aid mission, this time to Darfur on the western border of Sudan, which is currently under famine alert. The coordination efforts conducted so far appear promising, especially since the Sudanese government has announced the reopening of the Adre border between Chad and West Darfur this month. The current rainy season in Sudan, however, is making aid deliveries particularly difficult and is expected to last till October. There are still several other logistical factors that need to be tackled prior to making a solid commitment. Nevertheless, through relentless perseverance MOAS, together with our partners, shall keep trying to do our best to ensure that another aid delivery is made possible.
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