Sudan (Southern Sudan) - In November, violent clashes in Malakal precipitated a potential outbreak of cholera in the city. A Medair team installed two emergency water treatment systems, which provided clean water to thousands of residents each day.

When violence first erupted between southern troops and pro-government forces in Malakal on 29 November 2006, Medair was forced to relocate its staff. All three Medair staff returned safely back to Nairobi, via Juba and Lokichoggio. Nevertheless, soon after the relocation Medair was asked to return to Malakal to help prevent a potential outbreak of cholera.

The risk of cholera stemmed from the use of unclean river water, which was connected to reports of corpses from the conflicts polluting the river. Cholera causes rapid dehydration, which can lead to death. It spreads quickly among close-knit populations like in Malakal.

After an initial security assessment, it was decided to send an emergency WatSan team to install two Emergency Mobile Water Treatment Systems (EMWTS). An EMWTS uses a two-stage purification process of a water source: the first stage removes particles from the water; the second stage makes it chemically clean. The water is then distributed to tap stands for the public, who use plastic containers to collect the water and carry it home.

Medair raced against time to prevent the spread of the outbreak In partnership with UNICEF, the team installed the two EMWTS in just five days. The rapid completion of both systems was possible only because of hard work and some creative lateral thinking from the team. UNICEF played a vital role, by providing a vehicle as well as other necessary items.

Despite the difficult security conditions, the Medair team managed to supply the town population with up to 80,000 litres of clean water per day. These two systems continue to produce clean water for thousands of Malakal residents every day.

With the help of local staff, supplied by the Ministry of Urban Water, Medair hopes to continue supporting the needs of the people of Malakal. These local staff have been trained to operate the systems and will continue to do so once Medair leaves.

Medair is an international non-governmental organisation (NGO), with its operational headquarters located in Switzerland. Medair's Relief & Rehabilitation programmes in Southern Sudan have been running since 1992 and are currently supported with the assistance of UNICEF, DFID (British Government), BUZA (Dutch Government), SDC/DDC (Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation), OFDA (US Government) and ECHO (European Community).

Elsewhere in Southern Sudan, Medair provides emergency medical and water assistance for outbreaks, large people movements, and nutritional emergencies, as well as improving access to primary health care and safe water sources in a number of locations across the region. In the northern states, Medair provides access to primary health care and water and sanitation for up to 200,000 conflict-affected persons in West Darfur; works with war-displaced people in Khartoum; and supports access to primary health care in the Nuba Mountains in South Kordofan.

Medair's life-saving activities are dependent upon private financial support. To contribute to this work, please visit www.medair.org (Sudan section.)

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Founded in 1988, Medair is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) independent of any political, economic, social or religious authority. Its international headquarters are based in Switzerland. Its mission is exclusively humanitarian and it accomplishes its work in a spirit of dedication and solidarity, inspired by its Christian values.

Medair's objectives are to respond to suffering victims in war and disaster situations (especially those which have been forgotten or neglected) through various kinds of emergency and rehabilitative projects.

Medair employs 50 people in Switzerland, United Kingdom, Germany, France and Holland. In the field, 120 full-time expatriates help populations in difficulty, with the support of 1600 local employees.

The organisation is certified ISO 9001 at world wide level for its quality management system.