This year, TDRF plans to respond to the urgent call for support from the largest hospital in Tigray, Ayder Referral Hospital, in Mekelle, Tigray.  

According to Tigray Health Bureau, over 80% of its facilities have been systemically decimated. Over the last two years, 99% of ambulances have either been stolen or destroyed. The region of Tigray, with an estimated population of 7 million, has run out of essential medical supplies such as antibiotics and insulin.  Electricity and water access to hospitals and clinics have been disrupted due to deliberate physical destruction or the government-imposed siege. As a result, doctors in the remaining facilities are forced to operate without anesthesia and re-use medical equipment.  Medical workers have not been paid but continue to show up at remaining facilities trying to save lives with little to no resources. 

In addition to the deliberate destruction of existing healthcare infrastructure, a blockade has been placed over the region, restricting humanitarian aid such as food, medicine, and fuel.  The World Health Organization warns that many deaths from treatable diseases are likely going unreported. It is simply the worst humanitarian catastrophe of our lifetime.

Join us on this day of global giving to harness the power of social media to elevate goodness in the world. Your contribution will be critical in helping keep Ayder Hospital afloat to save lives.