Noah Pitcher is a global politics correspondent for Today News Africa covering the U.S. government, United Nations, African Union, and other actors involved in international developments, political controversies, and humanitarian issues.
The number of severely malnourished children admitted to Dupti Hospital in Ethiopia’s Afar region is up to four times the number seen in 2021, according to Doctors Without Borders,
Dupti Hospital serves over 1.1 million people, many of whom have been displaced from their homes due to ongoing conflict.
In a recent report, the organization revealed many concerning statistics about patients at the hospital amid famine-like conditions and regional chaos. “Patient mortality rates are staggeringly high, exceeding 20 percent in some weeks,” said Doctors Without Borders.
Over a year and half since the conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray region began, its effect has spread throughout the country and vulnerable populations have been devastated by its consequences.
“Thirty-five children have died in the last eight weeks alone and more than two-thirds of those patients died within 48 hours of admission,” reported Doctors Without Borders.
Across Ethiopia, hunger is a major issue as millions of people have been displaced and food systems have been damaged by conflict. According to data from the United Nations, 400,000 people in the Tigray region face phase 5 ‘catastrophic’ levels of food insecurity, which is the highest number on record in a single country since 2011.
In March, the UN World Food Programme reported that 20.4 million people are in need of food assistance in Ethiopia.
“To even begin to get control of this, major humanitarian assistance is urgently needed for displaced people and vulnerable host communities, with food security, primary healthcare, nutrition and water as key points of focus,” said Raphael Veicht, MSF Emergency Coordinator in Addis Ababa.
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