Thousands of families congregate in congested camps to escape the fighting. Here men, women and children queue for basic provisions outside the gym in Tulunan, Cotabato.

Photo: Abdullah Ampilan / Oxfam

The gym itself houses more than 400 families. We are working to improve water supplies to these camps, and provide better sanitation facilities.

Photo: Abdullah Ampilan / Oxfam

We have made several distributions of basic items such as water storage containers, plastic sheeting for additional shelter, and emergency food rations of rice, fish and salt.

Here some older children receive basic household and hygiene utensils for their parents who are either busy earning a living or taking care of small children.

Photo: Abdullah Ampilan / Oxfam

Cut off from their farms and other sources of income, people are badly in need of additional support. This husband and wife team is working to earn a living in an evacuation centre in Datu Piang. Here they are cooking traditional rice cakes.

Photo: Abdullah Ampilan / Oxfam

Oxfam has carried out assessments of some of the camps and have found that sanitation is inadequate to cope with the thousands of families that live in them. Diseases are on the rise, especially diarhorrea which can kill if not treated quickly. This Health Office, which caters for the displaced people in Datu Piang, often runs out of medical supplies.

Photo: Abdullah Ampilan / Oxfam