Rural residents of Lagawa Locality in South Kordofan are suffering from a deterioration of the health situation amid calls for outside assistance. Dr. Abdul Rahman Ali, a medic at Tima Hospital in rural Lagawa, said that the health condition in the region is terrible amid continuous increase in the mortality due to diarrhea and malnutrition.

He also asserted that more diseases are spreading among the Tima population in light of a shortage of medicines and medical cadres. Dr. Ali stressed that the shortages have contributed to the increase in diarrheal infections and malnutrition and he said that the mortality rate among children and the elderly has greatly increased. He also said that the number of patients visiting health centers varies from day to day, revealing that most of them are not assisted due to shortage in medicines and medical cadres. Dr. Ali stressed that most patients resort to traditional medicines and called on the government of South Kordofan to expedite in saving the health sector in rural Lagawa.

“The condition is terrible because we don’t have anything. There are cases of malaria and high rate of mortality due to lack of medications,” he told Radio Tamazuj. “There are some people who suffer from malnutrition and cases of dehydration and there is nothing we can do so people resort to traditional medicine. The mortality rate is high and we can’t do anything. Even in health centers, we have nothing and if people come to us, we only give them medical orientation.”

Dr. Abdulrahman Ali was speaking to Radio Tamazuj from the western Nuba Mountains, which are under control of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army.