Despite political change, access to health services continues to be limited for most people in Ivory Coast who cannot affordhealthcare under the current cost-recovery system. While continuing to support people living in former rebel-held areas, Médecins Sans Frontières has called for a reorientation of the government’s health policy and free healthcare. Insecurity remained high until April in the district of Bangolo, in the former Zone de Confiance, where our teams treated several people with gunshot wounds. This led Médecins Sans Frontières to publicly denounce the repeated attacks, robberies, assassinations and rapes perpetrated against civilians living in the area and to release a collection of testimonies. In June, Médecins Sans Frontières upgraded the Bangolo health centre to the level of district hospital. Here, we offer free quality secondary healthcare, including inpatient and emergency services, in the absence of adequate national health support. Our teams also runs a primary health centre and mobile clinics, providing basic healthcare and treatment for malnutrition in the district. About 85,000 outpatient consultations were conducted during the year.

In September, Médecins Sans Frontières ended its activities in Guiglo in the west where it offered medical care in a primary health centre and treated severely acute malnourished children under the age of five. Until September, about 26,800 outpatients consultations were carried out and 611 children under five were included in the nutritional programme.

Médecins Sans Frontières has worked in Ivory Coast since 1990