Indonesia
Poor sanitation impacting health in Indonesia
Indonesia is the fourth most populated nation in the world and is composed of nearly 17,000 islands. Nias is the largest island in the province of Sumatra and is located on its western coast. It is considered among one of the poorest regions in Indonesia; poverty is estimated to affect 30% to nearly 50% of the population. Unlike the rest of the country which is Muslim, the majority of the population on Nias is Christian.
The district of South Nias is mountainous and difficult to traverse making it inaccessible to most health services. Medical Teams International (MTI) has been working in Indonesia since an earthquake and tsunami hit in December 2004. MTI assessed the maternal and child health problems and, as a result, initiated a Child Survival Project in the district of South Nias.
The Child Survival Project is addressing health, nutrition and prevention and cure of diseases affecting children through community-based activities. Some of the significant successes of the project include:
- 556 out of 586 women from 58 villages participated in care group activities on the treatment of ARI, diarrhea prevention and child feeding.
- Care groups have delivered health messages to 1160 families
- Increase in the percentage of mothers who have access to soap or ash and wash their hands at critical time from 24% to 64%.
For more information about our work in Indonesia, please see the Child Survival in Indonesia report.
On December 26, 2004, the most powerful earthquake in 40 years shook the Indian Ocean and created a tsunami that crashed ashore in nearly a dozen countries. Hundreds of thousands of people died.
In Aceh Province, on the northern tip of Indonesia’s Sumatra Island, the tsunami killed 163,000 and displaced between 400,000 - 700,000 people. In addition to the lives lost, the tsunami destroyed much of Aceh’s infrastructure, including health and social services.
Our work
Medical Teams International has sent 46 medical teams to Indonesia since the 2004 tsunami. We transitioned our programs from Disaster Response to Development in 2006, after health assessments revealed a huge need for health-focused programs.
We established a field office in Medan, Indonesia, and launched community health projects in Aceh Province and Nias Island. Health assessments revealed great health needs in both communities. Our projects build health infrastructure, improve maternal and child health, implement Child Survival strategies and implement water and sanitation projects.
We have sent dental teams to provide direct care for patients in our project communities since 2007. Veteran volunteers report the oral health status in the communities where we work is the worst they have ever experienced.
We'll continue to implement community health projects this year. The Nias Child Survival project aims to improve the health of more than 10,000 children under 5 and 17,000 women of reproductive age. Our health promoters are working to deliver immunizations, nutrition training, control diarrheal disease and are addressing water and sanitation issues.
We will send six volunteer teams to Indonesia to support our programs this year.
Our partners
Medical Teams International partners with many local and international partners to carry out its programs in Indonesia. We are currently working under a local non-profit called a yayasan. Medical Teams International is committed to assisting the Ministry of Health with reconstruction, direct care, training and community health programs. We also coordinate with local community-based organizations and churches.
Please donate or volunteer to help save lives in Indonesia.