Chad: Distributing essentials to the Sudanese refugees caught in a humanitarian void

Our teams have launched a mass distribution of essential life-saving items such as plastic sheeting, mosquito nets, and bars of soap to support hundreds of thousands of refugees in Aboutengué camp and Adré transit camp. MSF has been distributing these non-food items in the Aboutengué camp, providing around 5,000 families with plastic sheeting.  In May, MSF also provided 11,370 mosquito nets in camp, and has been distributing soap bars per month since March. We have extended this soap distribution to provide an average of 47,000 bars monthly for a further three months until August. 

These supplies are essential to prevent diseases associated with the rainy season, such as malaria and diarrhoea. But as essential as they are, they are also the minimum that can be done to preserve the dignity of these people and to prevent them from being exposed to diseases when the rains come. 

The needs also come from the refugee communities with whom MSF has established regular engagement, consulting them on their urgent needs and responding to critical gaps.

"By consulting with community leaders and block leaders in Aboutengué camp, we knew that nearly 5,000 families were living in makeshift constructions without adequate roofing," says Primo Mawazo Fungamali, Logistics Team Leader for MSF in Aboutengué camp. 

"The supplies we distribute enable them to take shelter and regain a sense of serenity amidst the onset of the rainy season."

Since 24 June, our teams have expanded these distribution activities to Adré transit camp a temporary home to more than 180,000 displaced people as per the UN data, predominantly from Darfur. More than 90 per cent of them are women and children.

"Here, the arrival of the rainy season means the massive return of mosquitoes, and with them, malaria," says Steve Tegang, project medical referent for MSF in Adré transit camp. 

"Even if our medical teams are ready, we will inevitably see an explosion in the number of cases in the camp. However, the nets we distribute should contribute to contain this trend. As for the soap, it will contribute to counter diseases that are preventable through good hygiene, such as cholera (even if no cases have been reported for the moment) or hepatitis E, for which many have already been reported cases in the camp.” 

“The living conditions in this camp are very harsh," says Sabala Gag, MSF logistics manager in charge of distribution in Adré camp. "People live in makeshift shelters, built of straw or with any materials they find. That's why we distribute these plastic sheets. In the meantime, they are completely exposed to the weather and when it rains, they have nowhere to shelter. Often during downpours, people come to the health points that we have built in the camp, to shelter their children.” 

These hygiene items are the minimal can be provided as vital resources in an environment lacking essentials, from shelter to sanitation. MSF continues to supply 80 per cent of the water in Adré transit camp, emphasising its commitment to meeting the basic needs of the refugees.

These essential activities divert funds typically allocated for medical care to meet these urgent livelihood needs—a gap that mandated UN agencies have yet to address.

"MSF's core sector remains health, regardless of the contexts in which we intervene," says Méria Aimée Nadje, project coordinator in Adré transit camp. "However, in certain context and in the absence of actors specialised in other fields or when these actors lack funding, we sometimes broaden our scope of action."  

"The needs are immense, and while these items are essential, they cannot replace proper shelters and decent living conditions," says Florent Uzzeni, deputy operations manager based in Geneva. "It is imperative for the UN agencies and donor states to scale up their emergency aid in East Chad and ensure that these vulnerable populations of refugees from Sudan are not forgotten."