{"id":484893,"date":"2026-02-19T08:44:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T08:44:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/484893\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T08:44:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T08:44:12","slug":"central-african-republic-how-msfs-eureca-team-strengthened-their-response-to-health-emergencies-in-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/484893\/","title":{"rendered":"Central African Republic: How MSF\u2019s EURECA team strengthened their response to health emergencies in 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t \tRapid investigations and coordinated interventions support communities in need across the country.<\/p>\n

\n\tPublished: Feb 18, 2026Updated: Feb 18, 2026 \t<\/p>\n

Rapid response capacity\u00a0is\u00a0at the heart of MSF\u2019s operations\u00a0<\/p>\n

Created in January 2014 and based in Bangui, EURECA \u2013 named for its French name \u00c9quipe d\u2019Urgence en R\u00e9publique centrafricaine \u2013 is Doctors Without Borders\/M\u00e9decins Sans Fronti\u00e8res (MSF)\u2019s mobile emergency response team in Central African Republic (CAR). The team works to monitor, investigate and respond rapidly to medical and humanitarian emergencies throughout the country, including in the most isolated and difficult-to-reach areas.<\/p>\n

In a country marked by recurrent crises, a structurally fragile health system and frequent outbreaks of epidemics, EURECA is a central pillar of MSF\u2019s emergency preparedness and response plan.<\/p>\n

\"\"The medical\u00a0advisor\u00a0of the EURECA team checking a child\u2019s condition during an emergency intervention in the Kabo area. Central African Republic, 2025. \u00a9 Amadou\u00a0Baraz\u00e9\/MSF\u00a0<\/p>\n

2025:\u00a0a year marked by strong operational\u00a0response\u00a0<\/p>\n

In 2025, ten health and humanitarian emergency alerts were monitored across the country, resulting in six exploration and investigation assignments.<\/p>\n

These were carried out in:<\/p>\n

Birao, for yellow fever and whooping cough alerts<\/p>\n

Gamboula, for a measles epidemic<\/p>\n

Kabo, for measles and meningitis epidemics<\/p>\n

Zemio and Bozoum, for displacement<\/p>\n

Bocaranga, where suspected cases of measles and other potentially epidemic diseases were reported.<\/p>\n

These investigations made it possible to quickly direct the medical response and trigger two major interventions \u2013in both Gamboula and Kabo \u2013 in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Population (MSP).<\/p>\n

\u201cThese interventions demonstrate the importance of a rapid, mobile and well-coordinated response capacity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alexandre\u00a0Monnan, MSF medical coordinator in CAR<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

In\u00a0Gamboula,\u00a0the team responded\u00a0following the official declaration of a measles epidemic by the MSP.\u00a0This included\u00a0vaccinating\u00a019,721 children against measles,\u00a0repairing\u00a0three boreholes \u2013 including the sole borehole at the district hospital \u2013 and rehabilitating\u00a0the district hospital\u2019s waste management area.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The\u00a0response\u00a0also enabled the safe disposal of waste from vaccination activities and the referral of 16 patients to\u00a0appropriate healthcare\u00a0facilities, including children\u00a0with\u00a0severe acute malnutrition with complications and complicated measles cases.\u00a0<\/p>\n

After a measles epidemic was declared in Kabo, we launched a response that included\u00a0a three-round multi-antigen vaccination campaign with enhanced support for the local health system. A total of 11,242 children were vaccinated against measles, 6,587 against meningitis, 3,995 against yellow fever\u00a0and 1,147 pregnant women received the tetanus vaccine. At the same time, 15,541 children aged\u00a0six\u00a0months\u00a0to\u00a0five years\u00a0underwent nutritional screening.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The team also supported the rehabilitation of the hospital\u2019s waste disposal area, trained hygienists, donated\u00a0personal protective equipment and supported the repair and installation of solar refrigerators and freezers in several health facilities.\u00a0<\/p>\n

EURECA is a pillar of emergency response in CAR\u00a0<\/p>\n

The interventions in\u00a0Gamboula\u00a0and Kabo were carried out with strong involvement from local and central health authorities, as well as active participation from management teams and health district staff\u00a0\u2013\u00a0particularly in the preparation and implementation of vaccination campaigns.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThese interventions\u00a0demonstrate\u00a0the importance of a rapid,\u00a0mobile\u00a0and well-coordinated response capacity,\u201d\u00a0says\u00a0Alexandre\u00a0Monnan, MSF medical coordinator in CAR. \u201cBy working closely with teams from the Ministry of Health, we have been able to protect thousands of children from preventable diseases and strengthen epidemiological surveillance in areas where access to healthcare remains very limited.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"MSF conducts a vaccination session in Kabo during a EURECA emergency intervention. Central African Republic, 2025. \u00a9 Amadou Baraz\u00e9\/MSF<\/p>\n

\"\"MSF\u2019s emergency team\u00a0(EURECA)\u00a0sets\u00a0up a vaccination site during a measles outbreak response in the Kabo area. Central African Republic, 2025. \u00a9 Amadou\u00a0Baraz\u00e9\/MSF\u00a0<\/p>\n

For the communities concerned, the impact is immediate. \u201cWe were worried before the team arrived because of the disease,\u201d says a mother who came to have her child vaccinated in Kabo. \u201cToday, my child is vaccinated and I feel reassured. Without this campaign, many children would have remained unprotected.\u201d<\/p>\n

The humanitarian situation in the country is not expected to improve in 2026. In January alone, EURECA responded to two alerts related to community displacement, notably in Zemio and Ouanda Djall\u00e9. With the reduction in health and humanitarian funding, many actors are reducing their presence in CAR. Furthermore, with recurrent low vaccination coverage in the country, epidemics will continue to strike mainly in remote areas. MSF will continue to provide support for rapid response to health emergencies throughout the country, including in the most isolated and difficult-to-reach areas.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rapid investigations and coordinated interventions support communities in need across the country. Published: Feb 18, 2026Updated: Feb 18,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":484894,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[49,48,97038,84],"class_list":["post-484893","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-central-african-republic","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/484893","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=484893"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/484893\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/484894"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=484893"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=484893"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=484893"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}