Nyarugusu (Tanzania) : a Burundian refugee successfully operated on after a call for help

After a year of suffering and medical abandonment, a Burundian refugee from the Nyarugusu camp underwent emergency surgery thanks to a mobilization on social media. Victim of serious negligence during her delivery, she finally finds hope.
INFO SOS Médias Burundi
The alarm call launched on SOS Médias Burundi has borne fruit. Grâce Nibizi, a Burundian refugee suffering from serious post-cesarean complications, has finally undergone emergency surgery. The operation was a success, putting an end to months of suffering. Today, she is recovering well and expresses her gratitude to all those who advocated for her case.
An unexpected recovery
Grace Nibizi’s husband, moved, testifies to his relief : “My wife smiles again, she moves without difficulty, walks normally and can even jog,” he says.
Grace’s ordeal began in December 2023, after a caesarean section that allowed her to give birth to her child. While the newborn was in good health, the operation had left worrying after-effects.
Very quickly, her belly had taken on an abnormal size. “Right after the operation, I felt bad, as if something had gotten stuck in my belly, even heavier than during my pregnancy,” she explained from her small room in Nyarugusu camp (zone 10, village 6).
Her worrying condition was brought to light in early January 2025, when a video showing her with a disproportionately swollen belly, even covering her thighs, circulated on social media. Her call for help, relayed by SOS Médias Burundi, quickly attracted the attention of concerned organizations and authorities.
Pressures and twists
However, the media exposure was not without consequences. Grâce’s family was subjected to pressure and intimidation from certain authorities seeking to identify the source of the information leak.
“We were asked who had brought the matter to the press. But the reality was obvious : anyone who wanted to help could see her condition!” laments her husband, Jean Marie Bizimana.
Two weeks after her call was disseminated, Grâce began receiving medical appointments.
“I couldn’t believe it. After a year of abandonment, the same people who rejected me were taking care of me!” she says.
At the end of January, she was admitted to the Kabanga referral hospital in the Kasulu district, renowned for its surgical expertise. The operation finally took place.
Medical negligence at the origin of her ordeal
Doctors discovered that her postnatal complications were due to a serious medical error : during her caesarean section, surgical equipment had been left in her abdomen.
Grâce asked to see and photograph the object that had been removed, but the hospital refused. “The important thing is that you are being treated and that you will recover within a month,” she was told.
She resigned herself to accepting this explanation, relieved to finally be out of danger.
A mobilization that saved a life
Grâce and her husband welcome the intervention of SOS Médias Burundi, whose work in the refugee camps has helped to highlight their distress. Thanks to this mobilization, their story has been widely relayed, forcing the authorities to act.
The Nyarugusu camp in Tanzania is home to more than 110,000 refugees, including 50,000 Burundians. This tragedy highlights the challenges faced by many exiled people in search of decent medical care.
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Grace Nibizi, the Burundian refugee who was operated on after a call for help related notably by SOS Médias Burundi, February 2025 (SOS Médias Burundi)