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STORY: CAMEROON / CAR MALNOURISHED CHILDREN
TRT: 2.40
SOURCE: UNHCR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: FRENCH /NATS
DATELINE: 12 – 16 MAY 2014, GBITI /BATURI, CAMEROON
12 – 16 MAY 2014, GBITI, CAMEROON
1. Various shots, refugee camp
2. SOUNDBITE (French), Xavier Creash UNHCR officer in Gbiti:
“They walked 4-8-12 weeks, often eating very little and under attack, so they get here exhausted. 45% of the children suffer from severe malnutrition. Many have machete wounds, limbs amputated, caused by repeated attacks by the anti-balaka rebel group. Their state of health is desperate.”
3. Med shot, group of kids, one without one arm
4. Close up, stump
5. Close up, boy with machete scar on his head
12 – 16 MAY 2014, BATURI, CAMEROON
6. Wide shot, hospital exterior
7. Various shots, mothers with malnourished children
8. Med shot, UNHCR nutritionist John Malajiwa with child
9. SOUNDBITE (French), John Malajiwa, UNHCR nutritionist:
“We only have 12 beds here, but last week we found ourselves with 101 children by the end of the week. It makes it difficult for us while we are trying, with our partner AHA, to have structures put up to accommodate everybody. Meanwhile we have installed tents on the site, and kids are scattered about in those tents. It makes it difficult for us to care for them.”
10. Various shots, malnourished children
11. Various shots, Malajiwa with mothers and children
12. SOUNDBITE (French), John Malajiwa, UNHCR nutritionist:
“I've seen similar situations in other countries but not like here, here people are very weak and very tired. This is worse than anything I’ve seen before.”
13. Close up, malnourished girl
14. Close up, dead malnourished child
More than 80,000 refugees, fleeing from CAR fund shelter in Cameroon since the beginning of the year. In Gbiti at the CAR / Cameroon border some 20,000 Central-Africans are recovering from months of walking and hiding in the bushes from armed militias.
Before they arrived in Gbiti, refugees often spent two to four months walking off the beaten tracks, eating roots and sleeping outside. Many have died on the road, killed in ambushes or starved to death.
Those who arrive are usually extremely weak and traumatized. Children are severely malnourished.
Xavier Creash is UNHCR officer in Gbiti and he is the re to assist those who survive the journey.
He said that almost half of children that come to Gbiti suffer from severe malnutrition.
“Many have machete wounds, limbs amputated, caused by repeated attacks by the anti-balaka rebel group” – said Creash. “Their state of health is desperate.”
The most desperate cases are transferred to the UNHCR nutrition centre, at the Batouri’s hospital, 100 kilometres to the west. Here, UNHCR nutritionist John Malajiwa wages an exhausting struggle to save the ever increasing number of malnourished children.
“There are only 12 beds and a week ago we had 101 children” said John Malajiwa, UNHCR’s nutritionist.
Construction work has begun to increase the capacity. In the meantime and to deal with the demand, UNHCR has set up tents where children can stay with their mothers.
Malajiwa who had been in several others humanitarian crisis said that this one is like nothing he’d seen before.
“I've seen similar situations in other countries but not like here, here people are very weak and very tired. This is worse than anything I’ve seen before. – said Malajiwa.
Meanwhile, although the number of refugee arrivals in Gbiti has slowed recently, UNHCR and its partners are expecting fresh arrivals when fighting across the border eases. Arrivals speak of many people still hiding in the bush – many will be children suffering from severe malnutrition and in need of help.
