Sudan
OVERVIEW
The effects of conflict and insecurity continue to reverberate as Sudan approaches its first national elections since 2000. Since the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) officially ended the North-South civil war, nearly 2 million displaced people have returned to their communities in Southern Sudan and the Three Areas (Southern Kordofan, Blue Nile, and Abyei). But the lack of basic infrastructure and institutional capacity impedes economic and social progress. At the same time, more than 2.7 million people have been driven from their homes in Darfur, where, despite the signing of a peace agreement in 2006, conflict and insecurity persist, reducing humanitarian access. The U.S. Government is the leading international donor to Sudan, providing more than $6 billion in assistance since 2005. As part of the United States’ commitment to support the peace process, save lives, and safeguard human rights, USAID programs promote stability, recovery, and democratic reform and provide basic health and education services to the Sudanese people.
PROGRAMS
HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE
In Darfur, where conflict affects more than 4.7 million people, USAID has provided life-saving assistance since 2004. In other areas of Sudan, USAID meets immediate humanitarian needs while funding activities that support the CPA, lead to longer-term recovery, and support Sudan’s transition to peace and security. In 2008 alone, USAID provided $137.3 million countrywide for water sanitation and hygiene, health services, shelter and camp management, and livelihood support and infrastructure rehabilitation.
FOOD AID
Since 2004, USAID has provided more than 65 percent of all contributions received by the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) for Sudan. Despite persistent insecurity and violence, WFP has been able to reach over 90 percent of its target caseload in Darfur each month. As a result, malnutrition rates there have fallen since the peak of the crisis in 2004. In 2008, USAID provided $512.9 million countrywide toward food aid to support vulnerable people throughout Sudan. Priorities include assisting returnees and displaced people, providing basic services in underserved areas, and improving food security through increased agricultural production.
PEACE AND SECURITY
USAID promotes the emergence of an active, empowered civil society that monitors the progress of peace accords and advocates for change. USAID promotes improved access to independent information and strengthens the capacity of local government to address the root causes of conflict along Sudan’s contested North-South border. In Darfur, USAID supports to civil society and community organizations in early recovery and peace building activities.
GOVERNING JUSTLY AND DEMOCRATICALLY
In Southern Sudan and the Three Areas, USAID is supporting democratic governance and assisting the CPA’s key political processes. Activities work to strengthen the core institutions of the Government of Southern Sudan and develop systems to meet citizen needs and government priorities at the regional and state levels. This assistance also targets the fragile Three Areas in order to enhance local governments’ ability to transparently manage resources, deliver tangible peace dividends, and increase incomes. USAID also supports implementation of key CPA milestones--the 2008 census, the national elections (now scheduled for April 2010), popular consultations in Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan, and the 2011 referenda on the future status of Southern Sudan and Abyei. In support of these goals, USAID is assisting the administration of these processes, promoting civic participation and consensus building, and supporting international observation.
INVESTING IN PEOPLE
USAID health and education programs focus on delivering peace dividends to the people of Sudan. USAID programs strengthen maternal and child health services and reduce the burden of HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases. Access to health services is increased by training county medical officers and conducting national immunization days and polio eradication campaigns. To improve education, USAID rehabilitates schools, trains teachers, and mobilizes parent-teacher associations to increase Sudan’s capacity to provide quality primary and secondary education, especially for girls.
ECONOMIC GROWTH
USAID activities link isolated communities and facilitate an enabling environment for market development, through improvement of roads, assistance in electrification, agricultural support, bolstering of private sector competitiveness, support for improved land policies, and promotion of better environmental management of the Boma–Jonglei landscape and its rich biodiversity.
USAID Sudan Strategy Statement
USAID Monthly Update, November 2007 (pdf,432kb) | View the Sudan Monthly Update Archive
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