City woman tells Medair’s story in central Africa
Lucy Bamforth, 27, is a humanitarian aid worker based in Goma, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Edmonton native has also worked in Haiti and Afghanistan for the faith-based organization Medair, which provides health care in low-resource settings.
Q: What is Medair prioritizing in the DRC, a country where ongoing civil war has led to the deaths of more than five million people?
A: The first priority is delivering free health care to people who need it most. The east of DRC is rife with armed groups … sometimes working here feels like putting out fires with a teaspoon of water ... Civilians who are caught up, fleeing their homes, hiding in the forest for days …. Thousands of people die of completely preventable illnesses … malaria, diarrhea.
Medair works within existing health systems ... Congolese doctors will do two- to three-month rotations in clinics with the greatest need ... The aim is to strengthen the existing health-care system.
Q: You are currently on your way to work in the field. What does that involve?
A: At the moment I’m in a little village called Kashebere. Tomorrow we’re taking a motorbike to a village called Kahande ... and then hiking a half-hour into Nkimba, and then onwards for an hour and a half to Misau. I’m a communications officer, so I take photographs, do interviews, tell the stories of people, and get the word out about what Medair does.
Before Medair started working in the area, there was no access by road (to some of these villages). So I’m excited to see the road.
Q: Medair is a faith-based organization. How does that influence the organization’s humanitarian work?
A: Our international staff are Christian, as opposed to our national colleagues who come from all faith backgrounds. It’s not proselytizing ... Medair delivers humanitarian aid to people who need it most regardless of religion, sexual orientation. There’s no discrimination at all.
Q: What’s it like to return home to Edmonton after spending months in the field?
A: I love my family more than anything in the world but it can be difficult to come home. Your adrenalin level is at the highest it can be for months … you come home and you always have running water, you don’t hear gunfire in the streets.
It’s like going from 100 to 30 per cent … it takes a week or two weeks after that to come down. But then you enjoy the luxury of living in a safe and beautiful country.
This line of work is (difficult), emotionally demanding … but I wouldn’t do anything else.
Q: Given the current political climate in North America, what do you want to tell people about humanitarian work in conflict zones?
A: We live in a time where there are divisions and fear of the unknown ... fear of different cultures. The best way to build a bridge is to reach out and make a connection. That’s what Medair is doing.