Measles and Malnutritian Killing Somali Refugees in Ethiopia

This extract is from UN Dispatch, by Mark Leon Goldberg. Views expressed are the author’s own.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees says that 10 children are dying every day from measles and malnutrition in the sprawling Dollo Ado refugee complex in Ethiopia.

An assessment of mortality in one of four refugee camps at the Dollo Ado complex in Ethiopia has found that death rates have reached alarming levels among new arrivals. Since the Kobe refugee camp opened in June, an average of 10 children under the age of five have died every day.

While malnutrition is the leading cause of the high mortality, suspected measles is compounding the problem. Across all Dollo Ado sites we have seen 150 cases of suspected measles and 11 related deaths. The combination of disease and malnutrition is what has caused similar death rates in previous famine crises in the region.

UNHCR is urgently working with partners to respond to the emergency and control the suspected measles outbreak. A mass vaccination campaign against measles was completed in Kobe camp yesterday (Monday), targeting all children between the ages of six months and 15 years. It will continue in the other camps in the coming days.

The UN is also warning that a cholera epidemic will likely spread in Mogadishu.

In the meantime, there are growing concerns that food aid is being diverted to the black market and/or horded by militias.

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