After 60 days of blockade, MSF reopens its activities in Zamzam camp

After 60 days of blockade, 2,433 boxes of supplies allow us to reopen outpatient activities in the Zamzam camp.

MSF was able to receive therapeutic food supplies and to resume this week its outpatient nutritional program in Zamzam camp, nearby El Fasher in North Darfur, for children suffering from acute malnutrition (SAM and MAM). 

While we had to stop treatment of children with moderate forms of acute malnutrition in August, we had no choice in late September but to suspend the outpatient program also for children with severe acute malnutrition and focus only on inpatient care. That's because of months of obstructions and blockaded supplies as fighting escalated in North Darfur and its capital, El Fasher. 

Although the teams are relieved to provide life-saving treatment again to children who desperately need it in a camp with such catastrophic malnutrition levels, it’s just a few weeks respite. 

We continue to urge for unhindered massive humanitarian aid to be delivered. 

So, the overall messaging and calls to action shared in previous comms remain highly relevant. The reception of 2 MSF lorries to resupply our project is good news but it’s still a long way to an adequate scaled up response. 

As a reminder, we estimate that providing a month's worth of emergency food rations (i.e. around 500 calories a day per person) to the 450,000 people in Zamzam represents around 2,000 tons of rations - it would take 100 lorries a month to deliver them.