By Saidu Jalloh, Reporter D.S
Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has announced that it will conclude its medical support in the Bombali and Tonkolili districts of Sierra Leone by the end of September 2025. This transition will see the Ministry of Health (MoH) and other health partners fully assume management of medical activities in these regions.
The decision follows a gradual reduction of MSF’s support that began in early 2024. A steering committee comprising national authorities, health and development partners, and community representatives has been formed to ensure a smooth transition.
In Bombali district, MSF has collaborated with the MoH’s National Leprosy and Tuberculosis Control Program (NLTCP) for five years, focusing on enhancing the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of tuberculosis (TB) at the Makeni regional hospital and 15 peripheral health units. Notably, in 2022, Sierra Leone became the first country globally to routinely offer a shorter six-month all-oral regimen for drug-resistant TB (DR-TB). From 2020 to 2024, MSF and the NLTCP initiated DR-TB treatment for 299 patients and enrolled 6,593 in drug-sensitive TB (DS-TB) treatment. MSF’s support in Bombali is scheduled to conclude in July 2025.
In Tonkolili district, MSF has been providing primary and secondary healthcare services since 2016, initially responding to the 2014 Ebola outbreak. The organization has focused on improving access to healthcare for pregnant women, lactating mothers, and children under five at the Magburaka Government Hospital and the Mile 91 Hinistas Community Health Centre, as well as other peripheral health units. Since 2016, MSF has conducted 412,987 outpatient consultations and assisted 22,229 safe deliveries. The teams have also provided sexual and reproductive healthcare to adolescents and women, alongside medical care for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence. MSF’s support in Mile 91 and surrounding areas will end in August 2025, with support for Magburaka Government Hospital concluding in September 2025.
As an emergency medical and humanitarian organization, MSF is reallocating its resources in response to increasing global crises. This decision to conclude projects in Sierra Leone reflects the need to optimize resources and extend support to more individuals in need worldwide. In 2024, MSF operated in 75 countries.
Despite withdrawing from Bombali and Tonkolili districts, MSF will maintain operations in Kenema district, providing maternal and child healthcare at the MSF Mother and Child Hospital in Hangha and supporting peripheral health units. The organization will remain vigilant and prepared to respond to health emergencies in Sierra Leone.
“We want to express our thanks to the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health for the collaborative work done over the years in Bombali and Tonkolili districts, and to all the communities we have worked alongside, who have enabled us to provide medical care to some of their most vulnerable members,” stated Yashovardhan, MSF’s Head of Mission in Sierra Leone. “We are grateful to our Sierra Leonean and international staff, with whom we have provided significant support to the country’s health system. We will continue working together to ensure a smooth transition and the continuity of medical services to these communities to the best of our ability.”
MSF has been active in Sierra Leone since 1986, responding to various health crises, including cholera and measles outbreaks, the civil war, the Ebola outbreak, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the recent MPox response.
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