Once there, Khalif was admitted as he had signs of severe malnutrition. “Today the child is completely different than the day he was admitted,” explained Abdirasak Sheikh Abdiwahab, Médecins Sans Frontières Project Coordinator Assistant in Kismayo’s centre for malnourished children. “Cases like this who improve quickly are many, not only Khalif, but this is a [good example of the conditions people face here].”

With the current and still ongoing humanitarian crisis in Somalia hitting the southern regions hardest, Médecins Sans Frontières opened a therapeutic feeding centre for children under the age of five in the city of Kismayo, aiming to curb child malnutrition and mortality in the city and its surroundings. Children this age are most at risk of dying from malnutrition. Since opening this centre in November 2011, Médecins Sans Frontière has treated over 300 children, with an average of 50 under treatment at any time.

Médecins Sans Frontières has worked continuously in Somalia since 1991 and currently provides free medical care in eight regions. Over 1,400 Somali staff, supported by approximately 100 staff in Nairobi, provide free primary healthcare, surgery, treatment for malnutrition, as well as support to displaced people through health care, water supply and relief items distributions in nine locations in South- and Central-Somalia. Médecins Sans Frontières is also providing medical care to Somali refugees in Kenya and Ethiopia.

Learn more about how Médecins Sans Frontières treats patients for malnutrition.