Almost 1Mln Displaced People in Need of Humanitarian Aid in Southern Ethiopia - MSF

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th August, 2018) Over 900,000 people displaced along the border between Ethiopia's zones of Gedeo (Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' region) and West Guji (Oromia region) due to ethnic violence upsurge, are in the urgent need of humanitarian assistance, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF, or Doctors Without Borders) non-governmental organization said on Thursday.

"Given the scale of the emergency, and with so many people displaced from their homes in such a short space of time, getting shelter, essential relief items, water, hygiene and health services in place is a priority," Alessandra Saibene, in charge of the emergency response coordination, said, as quoted on the MSF website.

She added that most of the displaced people had "arrived with nothing" and were sleeping either on the floor in vacant buildings, or on the ground.

According to Saibene, the risk of communicable diseases is high as people lack access to clean water and live "in crowded and cramped conditions."

MSF currently focuses on improving the situation by distributing clean drinking water and necessities to people, improving the hygiene situation, and providing local health facilities with medical services.

"We are working with the Ethiopian Regional Health Bureau to ensure that people have access to basic, lifesaving healthcare. Our medical teams have conducted over 19,000 outpatient consultations, of which around 6,700 were for children under five. We have also supported the government with a vaccination campaign for children, protecting them against measles," Sabiene added.

Since March, inter-communal clashes between Gedeos and Oromos, two ethnic groups living on the borders of Gedeo and West Guji zones, have been forcing people from both zones to flee their homes. The escalation of violence took place against the backdrop of a long history of tense relations, as well as difficult situation in the country.

Gedeos and Oromos' clashes are rooted in the dispute over borders and resources' use.

Ethnic clashes have long been posing threat to Ethiopian security situation, as the country's population comprises more than 80 ethnic groups.