Dear Friend of MSF,

Conflict, disaster and disease have been hitting people hard in crisis zones around the world – even more so now with the added threat of a global pandemic. COVID-19 has sent humanitarian needs “skyrocketing,” according to the UN’s Global Humanitarian Overview. As we enter 2021, a record 235 million people will need humanitarian assistance and protection – that’s a 40% increase from 2020.

These times are anything but normal.

But through it all, our teams have stuck by our patients everyday. Médecins Sans Frontières’ work delivering emergency medical care to vulnerable people has never been more difficult than in the past year.

So today, as many of us look to 2021 with promise, I’d like to take this opportunity to acknowledge our field staff on the frontlines – the unsung heroes without whom, we simply wouldn’t exist.

Behind every mask, there is a story of heartbreak, humanity and hope. Everday, our teams put on that mask and go out to tackle the world’s biggest medical humanitarian crises.

Lives are still being torn apart by the brutal civil war in Yemen. Children are still catching malaria in the Central African Republic. Mothers are still facing difficult births as they bring new life into the world in Afghanistan. Drug-resistant TB still remains a big burden in Mumbai, India.

And, within the last few weeks, a fast-moving conflict in north Ethiopia has now become a refugee crisis in neighbouring Sudan.

These crises haven’t stopped for COVID-19. Neither have we. These emergencies—and the many more we intervene in—will not wait.

I personally thank you for your continued support to MSF, and I hope you continue to, so that MSF can provide medical care where the need is the greatest in 2021 and beyond.

Warm regards,

Fighting COVID-19 without borders

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented health crisis of global scale. Médecins Sans Frontières sought to reach vulnerable populations, delivering medical care to remote communities, people on the move, the homeless, and elderly people living in long-term care facilities. Our teams continued to respond to the pandemic through existing projects, as well as dedicated COVID-19 interventions in more than 250 projects in 63 countries.

First Aid in Beirut

Médecins Sans Frontières carried out an emergency response to the devastating blast in Beirut, Lebanon on 4 August. In addition to providing urgent wound care for those injured by the explosion, our teams donated medical supplies to local health authorities, distributed water and hygiene kits and provided continuity of care for chronic diseases patients.

To provide psychological first aid, we had psychologists working from each of our medical points and carrying out home visits.