Overview
Conflict in Unity state first broke out in late December 2013, only days after fighting began in Juba. Since then, the state has been one of the worst affected by the conflict, and currently hosts the highest reported numbers of internally displaced persons in the country. Many areas in Unity are largely inaccessible to humanitarian actors due to insecurity and logistical constraints. As a result only limited information is available on the humanitarian situation outside major displacement sites.
In order to fill such information gaps and facilitate humanitarian planning, in late 2015 REACH firstly piloted its Area of Origin (AoO) approach to collect data in hard-to-reach areas of Unity state. Through AoO, REACH collects data from a network of Key Informants (KIs) who routinely travel in and out of an area of interest; have sector-specific knowledge and direct and continuous contact with populations within an area of interest; or individuals who have recently come from locations within the areas of interest. Although current AoO coverage is still limited and its findings not statistically significant, they provide a good indication of the needs and current humanitarian situation in assessed areas of Unity state.
Findings presented in this document are drawn from primary data collected from key informants in March 2016 covering 70 communities across 7 of Unity’s 9 counties. Data was collected from 472 KIs currently in Bentiu PoC and reporting on areas they know well and from where they originate. The study focuses on the situation in villages or local communities from which many individuals have already fled, but where some families still remain. No information has been collected for any PoC. Note that when reporting on a change in access to services this refers to the proportion of KIs responding ‘yes’ with regards to a decrease in access since December 2013.