Ethiopia

Start of program: 2023

Country key figures

126.5 million inhabitants
20 million persons in need¹
3.5 million internally displaced persons²
20 million people in Ethiopia facing acute food insecurity

ALIMA key figures

1 month after project opening :

750 consultations for children under five
125 antenatal consultations
977 people reached through community health information sessions

Areas of intervention

Conflict and population displacement
Nutrition
Maternal Health
Mental health and psychosocial support
Climate shocks – drought / floods

The context in Ethiopia

Over the past few years, Ethiopia – the second-most populous country on the African continent – has been hit by conflict and climatic shocks, including the most severe drought since the last forty years. Conditions have deteriorated at a rapid pace for people in several Ethiopian regions: more than 20 million people are now in need of humanitarian assistance and protection*.

ALIMA, officially registered in Ethiopia in 2023, currently works in the Somali region to the south-east of the country. Local communities in Somali have been particularly hard-hit by droughts and desert locust infestations, as well as kidnappings, landmines, and cross-border attacks by non-state armed groups from Somalia. In November 2023, severe flooding – caused due to the soil’s inability to absorb moisture after years of drought – displaced over 746,000 people in the region. The floods submerged roads and homes, contaminated water sources and ruined health facilities. Moreover, 59% of people in the region face escalating levels of acute malnutrition.

ALIMA’s humanitarian impact in Ethiopia

Currently present in the Hargele and Elkare woredas in the Afder zone of the Somali region, ALIMA provides life-saving, free, quality medical and nutritional care for drought-affected communities.

ALIMA supports the functioning of nine healthcare facilities, including the zonal hospital, two health centers and six health posts. In addition, a Mobile Health and Nutrition Team (MHNT) travels to isolated nomadic communities, sites for internally displaced persons (IDPs,) and villages in remote areas to ensure access to healthcare.

In upcoming months, ALIMA will expand its services to Barey woreda.

Capacity-building for local medical structures and healthcare professionals

ALIMA supports the Ethiopian Ministry of Health (MoH) and its staff in capacity building by conducting training sessions on a variety of topics, such as Community Management of Acute Malnutrition, Integrated Management of Childhood Illness, Basic Life Support, Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response, Mental Health programming, Advanced Life Saving and Emergency Triage Assessment and Treatment. ALIMA also supports Woreda health offices on last mile delivery of medical supplies

Life-saving care for children

ALIMA teams ensure medical and nutritional care for children under five years of age. Children suffering from severe acute malnutrition receive treatment through an Outpatient Therapeutic Feeding Program that provides Ready-to-use Therapeutic Food (RUTF). ALIMA also operates Stabilization Centers to provide inpatient-care to severely malnourished children with complications or severely-ill children in need of pediatric care.

Ensuring access to maternal health care for woman

ALIMA provides vital maternal health services to support women during their pregnancies and help them give birth safely through pre-and-post natal consultations, assisted deliveries and emergency obstetric care. In addition to general sexual and reproductive health consultations, ALIMA also ensures medical assistance to victims of sexual and gender-based violence.

Providing mental health support to communities

ALIMA provides mental health and psychosocial support to local communities in Afder, particularly displaced persons and victims of gender-based violence. This is done through community information sessions, group counseling and individual consultations. We also organize mental health and psychosocial support training sessions for health and community workers.

Bringing basic health information to isolated communities

ALIMA’s strong network of community health workers, traditional birth attendants, and health extension workers ensure that local communities in Afder are informed about basic health and hygiene practices through community health information sessions. Topics include sexual and reproductive health, gender-based violence, mental health, or Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) practices. Families are also informed on how to detect malnutrition in their children at home by using the MUAC bracelet, a tri-colored bracelet that measures a child’s Mid-Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC).

¹ UNOCHA Global Humanitarian Overview 2024

² UNHCR report 31/12/2023