Belarus

War in Gaza:: find out how we're responding

War in Gaza: find out how we're responding

We are working with the Ministry of Health in Belarus to improve adherence to treatment for patients with drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) and a dependence on substances such as alcohol.

According to WHO's latest report, Belarus is listed as a multidrug-resistant TB high burden country. We are supporting the Ministry of Health in four TB facilities across Minsk city and region. Minsk is also a site for two clinical studies into shorter, innovative TB regimens which use newer TB drugs, TB PRACTECAL and endTB.

In Orsha, teams also treat inmates of a prison with DR-TB and co-infections such as hepatitis C, for which they receive direct-acting antiviral drugs.

Our activities in 2023 in Belarus

Data and information from the International Activity Report 2023.

37

Staff in 2023 (full-time equivalent)

1.7 M€

1.7M

Expenditure in 2023

2015

Year MSF first worked in the country

MSF in Belarus in 2023 In Belarus, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) supported the rollout of a new, safer tuberculosis (TB) treatment regimen. We also provided medical and humanitarian assistance to migrants attempting to reach the European Union.

In 2023, our team in the capital, Minsk, continued to provide technical support and assistance to the national TB programme. Following the publication of the World Health Organization’s updated guidelines in December 2022, which recommended the programmatic use of a new, six-month, all-oral treatment regimen for multidrug-resistant TB, MSF supported its implementation across the country.

We also continued to support the treatment of hepatitis C in the penitentiary system, using new, more effective drugs, and training medical staff in chronic hepatitis C diagnosis and treatment.

Since October 2021, our medical teams have been supporting people on the move in various locations across the country, including Belarus–EU border areas, providing humanitarian assistance and facilitating access to medical and mental health care.

After two years of these activities, MSF found that the medical needs of people on the move were outweighed by their needs for protection and legal support, which requires the specialist expertise of dedicated organisations. With this in mind, we made the difficult decision to conclude these activities in Belarus.