Living conditions for refugees in Ethiopia’s Gambella region are rapidly deteriorating following significant cuts to humanitarian aid in the region. The sharp decline is largely due to global reductions in support from key donors, such as USAID, which strains basic services including food distribution, healthcare, access to clean water, and sanitation services.
Located in southwestern Ethiopia near the South Sudanese border, Gambella has hosted a large number of mostly South Sudanese refugees since 2014. Today, more than 395,000 refugees are living in seven camps, including Kule Refugee Camp, where Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has provided healthcare services for over a decade.
The general decline of humanitarian funding in the region has led to the suspension of nutrition services in four out of the seven refugee camps, leaving around 80,000 children under the age of five at risk of life-threatening malnutrition.
“We receive food once a month—maize, wheat, and sorghum—but it always runs out before the month ends,” says Nyauahial Puoch, a mother who traveled about 8 kilometers from Tierkidi Refugee Camp to seek treatment for her 17-month-old daughter at MSF’s facility in Kule Camp. “Since last year, there has been a big decline. Some of the items we used to get are no longer provided at all.” Puoch’s daughter was diagnosed with malnutrition.
