Malnutrition, mortality above emergency levels in parts of Darfur: MSF

NAIROBI, Sept 27 (AFP) — The rates of malnutrition and mortality in parts of western Sudan’s conflict-torn Darfur region are above emergency levels, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said Monday.

Epidemiological surveys conducted by MSF earlier this month in South Darfur found “malnutrition and mortality rates well above emergency levels” in Kalma camp, near Nyala, where 66,000 people have sought shelter after fleeing violence, the medical charity said in a statement sent to AFP.

“It is a disgrace that just minutes from Nyala International Airport, up to 66,000 displaced people continue to live without adequate food or sanitation,” Vince Hoedt, MSF’s programmes co-ordinator in South Darfur, said in the statement.

“The people in Kalma camp are completely dependent on food distributions that are irregular and insufficient. More people fleeing the violence continue to arrive,” he added.

Since February 2003, Darfur, a region the size of France, has been the theatre of clashes between rebels and government forces backed by a militia group called the Janjaweed.

The United Nations estimates that up to 50,000 people have died and around 1.4 million others have been displaced.

“Displaced people in South Darfur continue to live on the edge. They feel unsafe and are afraid to return to their homes because of the ongoing violence, and more people are arriving every day in Kalma and Muhajariya,” in South Darfur, Hoedt said.

“Food distributions have managed to stave off the worst for now, but the situation remains precarious and unless aid is increased and mantained over a long term, preventable deaths from diseases and malnutrition will continue,” he said.