Sudan

A South Sudanese woman who fled to Khartoum during the north–south civil war prepares to return to her homeland with her family.

Christy Forster/USAID

Sudan continues to cope with the effects of conflict, economic shocks, and perennial environmental hazards, such as drought and flooding.  Fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states continues to affect civilians and cause displacement, including to neighboring Ethiopia and South Sudan.  In Darfur, an estimated 1.7 million people remained in internally displaced person (IDP) camps as of July 2012, according to the U.N.  Criminality and clashes over resources—mainly land and water—remain commonplace throughout Darfur.  On October 17, 2011, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires, a.i., Mary C. Yates renewed the Sudan complex emergency disaster declaration for Fiscal Year (FY) 2012.  The U.S. Mission in Sudan has declared disasters in response to the complex emergency on an annual basis since 1987.  As of August 17, the U.S. Government (USG) had provided more than $295.9 million in humanitarian assistance to Sudan in FY 2012.

USG HUMANITARIAN FUNDING PROVIDED IN FY 2012

*(As of August 17, 2012)

Sudan Complex Emergency Fact Sheet #5 and map

Key Developments

In early August, the SPLM-N and the Government of Sudan (GoS) signed separate memoranda of understanding (MoU) with the U.N., African Union, and League of Arab States tripartite group on general modalities for the delivery of relief assistance to conflict-affected populations in the Two Areas.  Humanitarian agencies are coordinating closely with the USG and other diplomatic partners to ensure rapid implementation of the MoU.

On August 12, the GoS Ministry of Interior issued a national state of emergency in response to heavy rains and associated flooding that have resulted in significant loss of life, displacement, and property damage in various parts of Sudan since July.  The GoS is responding to the needs of flood-affected populations and has not appealed to international donors for assistance.

Since the May 2011 conflict that caused nearly the entire 122,000-person Abyei Area population to flee toward South Sudan, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that approximately 45,000 people have returned to areas of origin located south of the River Kiir.  Of the IDPs originating from Abyei town and other areas north of the river, the majority—an estimated 67,000—remain displaced in Agok town and surrounding areas.  International Organization for Migration tracking and monitoring teams have documented limited new return movements in recent weeks, with total returns to areas north of the river plateauing at approximately 10,000 people in early July.  Humanitarian organizations remain committed to providing needs-based assistance as voluntary returns occur north of the river. 

In early August, in the first major security incident triggering significant humanitarian displacement, the security situation rapidly deteriorated in and around Kutum town, North Darfur State, following the shooting death of a district commissioner by armed militia on August 1.  Insecurity spread to the Kassab IDP camp, causing all resident IDPs—approximately 25,000 people—to flee to Kutum town, according to OCHA.  Humanitarian organizations temporarily suspended operations and evacuated staff from the area after armed groups looted compounds belonging to the U.N. and non-governmental organizations in Kutum town.  Between 50 and 80 percent of the 25,000 people who fled Kassab in early August had returned to the camp as of August 19, OCHA reports.  The returns began after the African Union–U.N. Hybrid Operations in Darfur (UNAMID) deployed additional troops to Kassab to help protect civilians.