Peru: medical care urgently needed for migrants from Venezuela

12 December 2022

Ana* is from Miranda, a state in northern Venezuela. Two years ago, she decided to emigrate with her five children in search of a dignified, safer life. With the little money she had, the journey was not easy. Arriving at the Colombian border, she and her children had to walk long hours to the capital Bogotá. From there they proceeded to Cali, where their health started to deteriorate, until they reached Tumbes in northern Peru. “It's very hard at this stage, having to sleep in the street and not having a job," she tells staff from Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). She and her family joined the over 800,000 migrants who cross the northern border of the Andean country every year, according to UN estimates.

In recent years, political tension and economic hardship, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, have pushed more than seven million people to flee their homes in Venezuela, resulting in one of the largest displacement crises in the world. Eighty per cent of those who migrate are taking refuge in Latin American countries, mainly Colombia and Peru. Violence and acute anxiety caused by uncertainty and the lack of prospects mark every step of their journey.

"Migrants face a number of traumatic experiences, including violence, threats, discrimination and forced labour, without adequate access to healthcare services," says Milagritos, medical officer with MSF in Tumbes, a strategic hub in the north-south and south-north migration route, where more than 250 people are treated by MSF every day.

Here, as in Lima, the country’s capital, our teams provide medical and psycho-social care to migrants crossing into Peru. Their already vulnerable situation is compounded by their irregular status in the host country, which severely restricts their rights and exposes them to physical and mental health problems that can leave a mark for the rest of their lives.

Juan*, 20, who also left Venezuela in the hope of being able to support his parents financially, confirms that the journey has been trying: "I have been backpacking for a month and a half, with young families, children and even sick people. I was hurt by the xenophobia that people like me experience. I would like to have what every young person aspires to: access to education, a quiet life, being able to work and enjoy life with my friends and family. It should not be too much to ask.”

In Tumbes, MSF runs two primary healthcare posts in collaboration with the local health authorities, providing medical services and psychological counselling, and runs health promotion activities. In 2022, we carried out more than 14,700 medical consultations in the city, nearly 20 per cent of patients being children under five. Our teams are also helping with COVID-19 vaccination.

At this juncture in the migration journey, the most common illnesses found are acute respiratory and skin infections, trauma, accidental injuries or burns, and dehydration", says Milagritos. MSF teams have also seen many pregnant women who need birth control because they did not receive adequate medical care during their journey.

* Names have been changed to preserve their identity.