KEY FACTS
Since late January 2016, there has been a surge in the number of South Sudanese fleeing into Sudan. Approximately 54,000 South Sudanese refugees have arrived in East and South Darfur and West Kordofan in just over two months. East Darfur has received about 43,000 of these new arrivals.
New arrivals are mostly coming from South Sudan’s Northern Bahr El Ghazal and Warrap states due to worsening food insecurity and ongoing conflict in the area, and arrive in Sudan in urgent need of food, humanitarian assistance and protection.
This is the first wave of South Sudanese refugees to arrive in large numbers in East Darfur, where no established mechanisms or resources were in place to receive and respond to a large influx. Nearly half of all recent arrivals, almost 27,000 people, have come to East Darfur’s existing Khor Omer camp. Emergency response has been ongoing in Khor Omer since early February but key gaps persist, namely in access to water, sanitation, shelter and emergency household supplies. Access to locations in East Darfur other than Khor Omer has been limited due to security and other reasons.
Further arrivals are expected to continue, with a peak in late May prior the onset of the rainy season in South Sudan. A total of 93,000 South Sudanese refugees are anticipated in East Darfur by the end of June, with an additional 7,000 in South Darfur.
Over 221,000 South Sudanese have fled to Sudan since violence broke out in South Sudan in December 2013.
Nearly 40 per cent have settled in White Nile State, with the remainder primarily in Khartoum, West and South Kordofan states. Parallel to this new influx, a steady flow of arrivals into White Nile State continues with about 500 refugees registered per week.On 17 March, Sudan’s Cabinet of Ministers announced a decision that all South Sudanese in Sudan are to be treated as foreigners, instead of ‘brothers and sisters’ as they were previously regarded.
Current Situation'
The new influx of South Sudanese refugees began in late January 2016 and continues unabated, driven by deteriorating food insecurity and ongoing violence in South Sudan. Refugees are arriving in Sudan nutritionally weak and in desperate need of food and safety, having endured difficult journeys and fled dire conditions in their areas of origin.
East Darfur has received the bulk of the new influx, with 43,137 arrivals as of 20 April. Some 26,911 have settled in Khor Omer camp just outside Ed Daein town. A verification exercise in Khor Omer was conducted in early April and limited aid items, including food, nutritional supplements and emergency household supplies, have been provided to some of the new arrivals. Ensuring a sufficient supply of safe water is an ongoing challenge and significant sanitation gaps persist. Distribution of shelter supplies is urgently needed with new refugees still sleeping under trees or in the open, but is still not authorized by federal authorities. Women and children comprise a large portion of the arrivals, and most are left alone in the camp during the day as men travel to Ed Daein town in search of work or food. A recently conducted nutrition screening identified a Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) rate of 8.1 per cent, which is below the SPHERE emergency threshold of 15 per cent. However, earlier data from the onset of the influx indicated much higher levels of malnutrition amongst newly arrived children.
The remaining 16,226 refugees in East Darfur are scattered throughout villages in eight localities, with security and access issues making assessment of needs and provision of assistance difficult. No aid has yet reached these areas.
Discussions are ongoing regarding the establishment of a new site in East Darfur to host the refugees as well as reception centres along the border; however a firm decision has yet to be made. As land availability remains a major challenge for further response efforts, including the distribution of shelters and construction of additional latrines, an agreement regarding site establishment and the identification of suitable land are key priorities.