Since November, 2009, Central Kurram Agency has been the theatre of an intense armed conflict. One of the consequences for the local population has been to flee to safer places, notably to Lower Kurram, where MSF medical teams have been supporting the hospitals of Sadda and of Alizai since 2006.

“The majority of these displaced women, children and men are staying with host families who also live in difficult conditions and can’t cope with the new arrivals for a long time,” said Tommaso Fabbri, MSF Project Coordinator.

“Others have rented houses or live in schools, and a few of them are staying in settlements used in the past by Afghan refugees. Their living conditions are difficult, adding to the stress caused by the ongoing fighting”

Children and mothers
Within nine days, the MSF team distributed relief items to 3,400 displaced families in and around of Sadda as well as in Alizai. This consisted of hygiene kits with soaps and buckets, night kits including blankets to help cope with the cold, and cooking kits. Rations of high calorie and vitamin biscuit bars were also distributed to every pregnant and breast feeding woman.

“The main challenge for us was to organize efficiently a relief distribution in an area where the curfew drastically restricts the movement of our teams,” added Fabbri.

No contact
The majority of the displaced staying in this zone does not foresee a near end to their difficult situation, as fighting continues in their villages and their need of assistance, notably in terms of food, remains acute.

“The situation in their villages remains uncertain,” said one member of the distribution team. “They told us that some members of the family stay in the village to take care of the house and that they have had no communication with them.”

The only medical help
MSF has been working in Kurram Agency since 2004 and is the only international medical organization providing free healthcare with a permanent presence in Kurram Agency. MSF offers outpatient paediatric services as well as maternal health care in Sadda and Alizai hospitals.

Following the influx of displaced families, the number of pediatric consultations has significantly increased to 1,200 consultations each week compared to 1,200 consultations each month carried out previously.

MSF teams have also been providing consultations to displaced families arriving from Kurram Agency in Peshawar and Charsadda.