MSF resumes limited medical activities in Pibor county

March 18, 2016 (PIBOR) – The medical charity, Medicins San Frontiers (MSF) said it has re-established a limited medical program in its heavily-looted centre in Pibor, South Sudan.

MSF said was forced to evacuate to the United Nations base amid heavy fighting on 23 February and upon return four days later, its team found the medical centre was completely looted, depriving the area’s170,000 people of access to secondary healthcare and undermining medical response in Lekonguole and Gumuruk.

“We have managed to open a limited medical program to address the most urgent needs of the population, but we have not returned to business as usual in terms of medical capacity,” Corinne Benazech, MSF head of mission in South Sudan said in a statement.

“Our ability to provide medical assistance has been greatly diminished by the looting of our medical facility two weeks ago. It is women and children who suffer most from reduced access to medical care, not only in Pibor, but also in Lekonguole and Gumuruk,” she added.

MSF called on armed actors to respect the provision of medical care.
Tens of thousands of people have been killed and over two million displaced in South Sudan’s worst outbreak of violence since the young nation succeeded from neighbouring Sudan in July 2011.

A peace deal signed in August last year to end the conflict is yet to make meaningful gains, amid continuous violations of a ceasefire agreed upon by both sides involved in the South Sudanese conflict.

According to MSF, the medical charity has also been supporting the provision of primary heathcare services in Lekonguole and Gumuruk from its medical centre in Pibor, but can now only provide the most critical medicines to support the population of those communities.

“We call on anyone in possession of looted medical equipment to return it to MSF. Some of the items that were taken from us have no use or no value outside of a medical facility. If they are returned to MSF, it will help improve the population’s access to medical care by allowing for the resumption of more life-saving medical activities,” said Benazech.

However, as MSF continues providing assistance to those mostly in need, it says any further targeting of its medical services could make it very difficult for MSF to sustain life-saving services in the Pibor area.

(ST)