Feature - TB: Somali region's biggest killer

Nesredin Ala has lived every one of his four years in a camp for displaced people. He is now destined to celebrate his fifth birthday in a tuberculosis clinic. But many children are not so fortunate. TB is the single biggest killer in Ethiopia's Somali Region and clinics are few and far between. In the squalid conditions of the camps which dot the region, disease spreads like wildfire. It takes eight months of treatment to ensure that the vaccinations have been effective. This means mothers and their children must complete the course or succumb to the disease. The nomadic lifestyle of many of the pastoralists in this region, along with the huge displaced population - caused mostly by drought and conflict - compounds the difficulties in tackling TB. In a country where resources are already stretched to the limit, TB is a major constraint on the budget. TB patients – many of whom are also infected with HIV/AIDS - occupy more than half of all hospital beds. In the capital, Addis Ababa, one hospital is turned over completely to tackling the disease. LOCAL NGO TACKLING TB In the Somali region, a local non-governmental organisation (NGO) is now trying different methods to fight the disease. The Mother and Child Development Organisation (MCDO) has set up centres for refugees to undergo treatment. The facilities are free to victims of the disease. The MCDO treats families who have travelled hundreds of kilometres. The majority of its patients are from drought-stricken Gode – some 600 km away. “TB is one of the most serious diseases here," said Hawa Aden, the organisation's chairwoman. "It is the biggest killer yet it is treatable if caught early...That is why we have set up the compounds so we can target mothers and children and the men.” The MCDO runs two compounds – one for men and the other for women and their children.

TB centre in Somali region

The effects of the disease are clearly etched on the faces of the women and children. Many are unable to stand for more than a few minutes, but also unable to sit because of aching limbs. The weight-loss, already a serious problem with displaced people who are facing severe food shortages, is astounding. “In this day and age when there are medicines available, TB should not kill people, Hawa stressed. Her organisation also conducts awareness programmes for TB sufferers undergoing treatment, such as HIV/AIDS, literacy and gender issues. NEED FOR MORE CENTRES The MCDO is now trying to expand to other parts of Somali Regional State. “If we can set up more compounds we can treat more people,” Hawa said. But the process is long and slow. At present the demand is so high that they have to turn away many people. “We are only accepting displaced people," she stressed. "We need more centres." The patients at Hawa's centre all tell a similar tale. “They lost their livestock during droughts. They faced starvation and their resistance was low,” she explained. But she insists it is vital to get families back to their homes. Her organisation has already helped some 300 families return home. The World Health Organisation says more than a third of Ethiopia’s 65 million population has been exposed to TB. It estimates that around 166,000 currently have the disease – a third are almost guaranteed to die from it. The WHO is providing both financial and technical support – not only in the shape of drugs but also through training and research. Eyob Tsegaye, who heads the fight against TB at the WHO, told IRIN that until the country has full coverage to combat TB, then the full impact and its relation to HIV/AIDS will never be known.