IRC increases emergency aid

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has expanded its emergency aid programme in Guinea and Liberia to cater for thousands of Liberian returnees, Ivorians and third country nationals fleeing recent violence in Cote d'Ivoire, the IRC reported on Monday. In December, four of its health clinics on Liberian border towns provided care for nearly 13,000 new arrivals. Drugs and medical supplies were also provided to a hospital in Sanequelli, where patients from the clinics were referred for more extensive treatment. Programs were also established at Liberian transit centers in Karnplay and Loguatuo to prevent incidents of violence against women and to address the needs of victims. "This is a problem that always increases in conflict settings and there is not enough being done in this area," IRC Liberia director, Wubeshet Woldemariam, said. These included separating sanitation facilities for men and women, improving lighting at transit centers, and providing treatment and counseling to victims. "Since fighting erupted in Côte d'Ivoire in November, more than 61,000 people have crossed into Liberia. The majority of the Liberians, who had sought refuge in Côte d'Ivoire during years of civil strife in Liberia, are returning to their communities of origin. Most of the newly uprooted Ivorians and third country nationals have found shelter at transit centers," IRC said. An emergency education programs for children and adolescents in Guinea's Nzerekore area, which is both a primary entry point for refugees and returnees and an area where the IRC has had a longtime presence, has also started. IRC emergency coordinators were also conducting an assessment in Côte d'Ivoire into immediate humanitarian needs of the internally displaced population while IRC was considering emergency assistance in towns where most of the displaced were converging.