Behind every malnourished child in Afder stands a mother in distress. In this remote corner of Ethiopia, in Afder, ALIMA cares for both.
The Afder zone sits in the Somali region, in the south of Ethiopia. Historically a pastoral area, it now faces climate disruption. Families who once lived off their livestock now face two extremes: prolonged droughts and devastating floods. Without milk or a reliable source of income, malnutrition strikes, affecting children first.
What does illness cost beyond the body? The distress of mothers watching their child grow weaker day after day. This hidden suffering is also what ALIMA’s teams strive to treat.
“I had lost all hope”
A week ago, an ambulance carried Sahra and her son, Khader, through the doors of the Hargelle hospital. Khader, a seven months old severely malnourished boy, was unconscious. Since then, Khader has been receiving treatment, and Anas, ALIMA’s Mental Health Supervisor, has been supporting Sahra.
“A mental health supervisor gave me consultations, including emotional support, and that eased my distress. I had lost all hope, my child was critically ill. But after receiving care, I now believe in recovery. If the child becomes healthy, you become mentally stable. Now the baby is doing well and I want to return home to my other children.”
Rehabilitated with ALIMA’s support, Hargelle Hospital’s ambulances are back in service. Across the region, they reach patients in critical condition, particularly children with severe malnutrition, and bring them the care they urgently need. One of them rushed Sahra and Khader to the hospital.
“We support patients and their families in restoring hope”
Anas, the ALIMA’s Mental Health Supervisor who treated Sahra, provides psychological support at Hargelle hospital and in the other health centers supported by ALIMA. He supports mothers, like Sahra, deeply affected by their child’s severe malnutrition.
“There were no organizations which were providing this service other than ALIMA in this area. So that is why I came to Afder. In the community, people think that someone with a mental illness cannot easily recover. We carry out psychoeducation with families, showing them how to support the patient and provide emotional support. We support families in restoring hope.”
Caring for body and mind
In response to this climate crisis, ALIMA has been working in Afder since 2023. Initially focused on treating malnourished children, the response has grown to cover more needs, with the addition of mental health support, capacity building for Ministry of Health teams, and the deployment of a mobile clinic to reach isolated communities. Today, ALIMA provides care to patients at Hargelle hospital and five health centers, while its mobile clinic brings treatment directly to families living beyond the reach of health facilities.
This project was made possible thanks to humanitarian funding from the CIAA IFSAN.
