From February 7 to 15, 2026, the first cleft treatment mission of our Ethiopian team took place in Warder.
Warder is located in eastern Ethiopia, more than 1,000 kilometers from the capital Addis Ababa. In this region, many families live as nomads. Livestock farming is often their main source of livelihood. But this is repeatedly threatened by prolonged droughts. Accessing medical care involves long journeys that people cannot afford. As a result, many children with cleft lip and palate are denied surgery at an early age. Yet the right timing is crucial for further development: a cleft lip is ideally operated on at around three months of age, and a cleft palate from the eighth month of life onward. In Ethiopia, many children are treated much later.
This is exactly where the work of our two Ethiopian surgeons comes in: Dr. Samater and Dr. Abdinasir regularly organize missions outside their permanent project site in Jijiga so that qualified help can reach patients directly.
64 times a new lease on life
The journey from Jijiga to Warder takes eight hours. Through regional news on television and radio, many families learned about our relief mission. The rush is enormous. Everyone is hoping for help for their children and relatives.
For nine days, Dr. Samater and Dr. Abdinasir operate from morning until evening in order to help as many children with cleft conditions as possible. Sixty-four operations are the wonderful result of this first relief mission in Warder. That means a new lease on life for 64 young and adult patients.
Another milestone
The new mission site in Warder is another milestone within the framework of the successful development of the Deutsche Cleft Kinderhilfe project in Ethiopia and Somalia. Since 2022, more than 790 people with cleft conditions have already been treated at various locations. In the future as well, our goal will be to help where help is needed most urgently.
