Published: 2016-06-20 kl. 14:19
Six camps with critical logistical camp support for humanitarian aid workers have been established in South Sudan. The mission required that IHP staff overcame numerous challenges during six months of intensive work. The IHP mission has been conducted in support of IOM’s operations in the country, aimed at establishing light base camps for accommodating humanitarians in various deep field locations across the Greater Upper Nile area.
The IHP light base camps have been deployed for humanitarian NGOs to utilize as operational support in difficult-to-reach areas. The camps provide accommodation in tents along with amenities such as solar panels and water purification equipment. IHP also trained NGO staff in running the camps. Now, humanitarian relief organizations are providing services such as health programmes and food distributions from the IHP camps.
The mission was initiated in a close partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and six camps have been set up in the locations Melut, Wau Shiiluk, Leer, Koch, Nimni and Nialdhu, each providing space for approximately 30 humanitarians.
The mission was carried out despite difficult working conditions:
"The IOM staff is satisfied what we had accomplished, they did not believe that we would manage to complete the two last camps because of the weather and the security situation in the areas we would be working in" – says Björn Johansson, the first and last Team Leader.
South Sudan is ranked among the 20 countries of the world with the lowest Human Development Index (2015). Since conflict broke out in 2013, more than 2.3 million people – one in every five people in South Sudan – have been forced to flee their homes. Some 185,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) have sought refuge in UN Protection of Civilians (PoC) sites, and the IHP mission contributed to the humanitarian effort to reach the population beyond the PoC sites.
Each of the six camp locations has an appointed NGO that has taken upon itself to continue running the camp after IHP performed the set-up, completed the handover and moved on to the next location. The humanitarian organisations report that in addition to the direct humanitarian impact of providing access for humanitarian services to beneficiaries, the IHP camps provide an increased quality of life, reducing the harshness of operating infield conditions, as well as providing space for coordination of humanitarian activities between organisations.
The IHP partners MSB (lead agency) and DEMA has been working closely together during the deployment, using mixed teams and equipment from both organizations as well as being supported with equipment from DFID. The mission was financed by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and Danish Ministries of foreign affairs, and in addition, the South Sudan Common Humanitarian Fund, which is managed by the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, contributed with funds for the project. The mission will be followed by an after action review workshop in Copenhagen 20 and 21 June 2016.