The rainy season brings with it the promise of better harvest, greener plains and valleys and abundance of feeds for cattle to produce highly nutritious milk and meat products. It also at the same time poses health threats in the form of possible disease outbreaks like Malaria and Acute Watery Diarrhea that could result from poodles of stagnant water, poor sanitary and hygiene conditions and impending floods. This is particularly true for the South Sudanese refugees and the surrounding host communities in Gambella.

It is with this in mind that a WHO delegation led by Dr Pierre M’pele-Kilebou, Ethiopia Country Representative, traveled to Gambella on 10-12 June 2015 and visited the refugee community and health facilities of Tierkidi Refugee Camp which shelters more than 50,000 South Sudanese refugees, and Etang Health Center that provided services to the surrounding host community. The delegation also met with the Gambella Regional Health Bureau and the UN missions in Gambella to discuss on the same issue.

To address impending emergencies, the WHO Representative, with financial support from the Japanese Government, has set up an Emergency Preparedness and Response Team based in Gambella for the rainy season led by an emergency and program expert with extensive local and international experience in health emergency response – including Ebola preparedness and response in Liberia.

Also, with the support of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), Ebola preparedness plan will be strengthened in the region, and in the refugee camps, through technical and logistical support to the Regional Health Bureau, to address the possible threat of disaster and disease outbreak to the South Sudanese refugees and surrounding host communities.

Speaking with both the Regional Health Bureau and the UN agencies operating in Gambella, Dr M'pele-Kilebou, Head of WHO Ethiopia, confirmed WHO’s commitment to lead the health emergency preparedness activities, underscoring that we can never be too prepared for emergencies, adding, “Being well prepared is already half-way towards winning the battle against Health emergencies.”

Since December 2013, Gambella Region has welcomed more than 264,000 refugees from South Sudan, around 300 refugees daily crossing borders to Gambella to seek protection and support from the Ethiopian Government, the Gambella Regional State and its people and the international community led by UNHCR.

Strengthening Maternal Health Services in Gambella

The Executive Director of the Ethiopian Midwives Association (EMWA) and the Executive Secretary of EMWA Board had joined the WHO high level mission to Gambella to support the obstetric and newborn care provided to the refugee and host communities of Gambella. The EMWA representatives accompanied the WHO mission to Teirkidi Refugee Camp and provided expert advice and technical support on antenatal and immediate postpartum care to the two midwives stationed at the camp’s health facility. The EMWA team also conducted supportive supervision of the Basic Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (BEmONC) training that was ongoing at Gambella Hospital.

For more information please contact:

Dr Fahmi Ahmed
Emergency and Disease Management
email:  ahmedf [at] who.int" target="_blank">ahmedf [at] who.int 

Photos: WHO Ethiopia/ Loza Mesfin Tesfaye