Médecins Sans Frontières has been providing healthcare to people still affected by the conflict between government forces and the Communist Party of Nepal which lasted from 1996 until 2006, and by the resurgence of violence that accompanied a chaotic peace process. Our teams worked where help was most needed, including in basic healthcare, reproductive healthcare and water and sanitation provision.

Despite Nepal’s struggles with political stability after the peace process, Médecins Sans Frontières has now left the country as government agencies and developmental organisations start to take a longer-term approach to covering the people’s health needs.

In May 2009, Médecins Sans Frontières handed over programs in the mountainous Kalikot district. Up until then our team had offered basic and secondary healthcare, tuberculosis treatment, and emergency services with a special focus on healthcare for pregnant women and children under five. In 2009, we carried out more than 10,000 consultations and assisted with 192 deliveries.

In December, Médecins Sans Frontières handed over its last remaining program in the Terai region of Nepal, which provided free medical services, emergency consultations, maternal healthcare, and treatment of acutely malnourished children.

Médecins Sans Frontières leaves behind an improved level of care for mothers and newborns, and better trained staff. Since 2002, our teams have provided more than 30,000 consultations, antenatal care to 6,000 women and treated around 2,000 malnourished children.

Médecins Sans Frontières has worked in Nepal since 2002.