*Data from MSF International Activity Report 2023
Mali 2020 © Paul Lorgerie
Mali
Access to medical care remains very limited in the north and center of Mali due to a lack of medical staff and supplies and spiraling violence between armed groups.
News update
Violence drives increased surgical needs among women and children
May 17, 2024—Armed conflict and poor access to health facilities have made it difficult, if not impossible, for many people in Mali to move about or seek medical attention when they need it. In December 2023, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) began providing surgical activities at Niono Hospital in Mali, where access to medical care remains very limited due to a lack of medical staff and supplies and spiraling violence between armed groups. At Niono Hospital, 69 percent of all operations carried out over the last four months have been on women and children, reflecting the toll this conflict takes on people in surrounding communities.
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Our work in Mali
Amid escalating violence and increasing attacks on our staff and facilities, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams continue to deliver essential health care to displaced people and war-wounded patients in Mali.
What's happening in Mali?
Violence against civilians intensified in 2023, prompting displacement, particularly in the country's northern and central regions. Others were trapped in cities and villages by armed groups or impacted by intercommunal conflict. Violence in northeast Mali has also caused movements of people, especially around Ansongo and Gao, where we continue to provide humanitarian aid and treat the wounded.
How we're helping in Mali
Many international humanitarian organizations withdrew from areas affected by fighting, as they were unable to gain access to people in need. Our teams remained in Koro and Douentza, in the central region of Mopti, responding to the needs of displaced people and assisting refugees from neighboring Burkina Faso.
MSF and other NGOs were also subjected to violence during the year; staff were kidnapped and assaulted, MSF-supported health facilities were looted, and our ambulances were attacked. In November, we were forced to evacuate our teams from Kidal, Boni, and Nampala due to a marked deterioration in security in these areas. Nevertheless, we continue to run medical activities and provide humanitarian aid to people in remote areas affected by the conflict.
In addition to caring for the war-wounded and responding to the needs of displaced people, our teams provided a range of medical services, including maternal and pediatric care, screening and treatment for malnutrition, mental health care, and emergency surgery across all our projects in the country.
In the capital, Bamako, we continued our project in partnership with the Ministry of Health, which focuses on providing care for women suffering from breast and cervical cancer.
How we're helping
530,000
Outpatient consultations
66,000
Patients admitted to hospitals
1,870
Surgical interventions
1,040
People treated for intentional physical violence
More news and stories
Learn about MSF’s journalistic roots and our commitment to bear witness and speak out about the plight of the people we treat.
Story May 17, 2024
Violence in Mali drives increased surgical needs among women and child...
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Learn about MSF’s journalistic roots and our commitment to bear witness and speak out about the plight of the people we treat.
How you can help
Not everyone can treat patients in the field. But everyone can do something.
Some humanitarian crises make the headlines—others don’t. Unrestricted support from our donors allows us to mobilize quickly and efficiently to provide lifesaving medical care to the people who need it most, whether those needs are in the spotlight or not. And your donation is 100 percent tax-deductible.
