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LOS ANGELES, CA, June 20, 2011 – This June 20, World Refugee Day, International Medical Corps recognizes the more than 43.7 million refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) who are struggling to rebuild their lives in camps and urban areas where food, clean water and medicines are often scarce - and is calling for increased humanitarian services for those fleeing conflict in countries such as Libya and Sudan.
Forced to start again often in harsh conditions with few possessions, little money and no jobs, refugees and IDPs are left susceptible to poverty, disease and malnutrition.
With generous support from the U.S. Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, USAID’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance, and other international donors, International Medical Corps is continuing to protect the health and well-being of some of the largest refugee, IDP and host populations around the world, including in Africa and the Middle East.
In the four months since the Libyan crisis began, more than 919,000 people have fled the fighting across borders, primarily to Tunisia and Egypt. To support the influx, International Medical Corps is continuing to provide health services and assistance to displaced Libyans and third-country nationals, providing health services at Ra’s Ajdir, Dehibat, and Choucha transit facilities. In addition to medical assistance, the organization is also delivering hygiene kits and health and hygiene education to those in need at Ra’s Ajdir and Dehibat transit facilities and training health workers in psychological first aid.
International Medical Corps is also monitoring the ongoing uprisings in the Middle East – where the organization has been providing health care and refugee assistance in a number of countries throughout the region – and preparing to deploy additional resources as needed. In addition, International Medical Corps has been working in Southern Sudan and the Darfur region to support the more than 2.7 million displaced by ongoing conflict. The organization is monitoring the current crisis in the border region of Southern Kordofan where violence has displaced an additional 60,000 people and will mobilize local staff to provide support if requested.
From Somalis seeking asylum in eastern Ethiopia to those fleeing the violence in Afghanistan, International Medical Corps’ teams are on the frontlines providing vital resources. To help draw attention to the millions of people around the world without home or country on World Refugee Day, International Medical Corps has set up an online resource regarding the organization’s Refugee Response work around the world at www.InternationalMedicalCorps.org/refugee. By sharing the webpage with friends and family or making a contribution to International Medical Corps programs, supporters can help the organization continue its work in the most difficult environments to ensure the displaced have what they need to survive and rebuild their lives.
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Since its inception more than 25 years ago, International Medical Corps’ mission has been consistent: relieve the suffering of those impacted by war, natural disaster, and disease, by delivering vital health care services that focus on training. This approach of helping people help themselves is critical to returning devastated populations to self-reliance. For more information visit: www.InternationalMedicalCorps.org. Also see us Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
