EU donates €2 million to Unicef to support Sudan’s children

The European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO) has contributed two million Euros to Unicef Sudan to help refugees and displaced people in the country, 60 percent of whom are children.

“With close to 200,000 refugees from South Sudan and more than 2.5 million acutely malnourished children in the country, we are facing critical humanitarian needs in Sudan,” said Jean-Louis de Brouwer, ECHO’s Director of Operations.

“With this new funding we enable Unicef to supply refugees with clean water and sanitation, and at the same time prevent tens of thousands of children from dying of malnutrition. The European Commission remains committed to addressing the most urgent humanitarian needs in some of the country’s most complex environments.”

The new funds will help to reduce deaths and illness linked to malnutrition, Unicef and ECHO state in a joint press release today.

Unicef will be able to provide 100,000 children with life-saving care and raise awareness about its causes among the population in White Nile, Darfur, and eastern Sudan. Another 21,000 people will be given access to safe drinking water as well as adequate sanitation and hygiene services.

“More than 3 million children aged 5-13 years remain out of school, and 550,000 are severely acutely malnourished and are at risk of death. This contribution is therefore quite timely.”

“Unicef appreciates the sustained contribution to the well-being of children by the European Commission, especially the most vulnerable,” said Geert Cappelaere, Unicef’s representative in Sudan.

“In the midst of rising global emergencies and dwindling funds, the dire situation of Sudanese children is at risk of going unnoticed. Sudan remains one of the most protracted children’s crises in the world today with 3.2 million children targeted for humanitarian assistance.

“More than 3 million children aged 5-13 years remain out of school, and 550,000 are severely acutely malnourished and are at risk of death. This contribution is therefore quite timely,” Cappelaere emphasised.

Since the eruption of the conflict in South Sudan in December 2013, nearly 200,000 South Sudanese have sought refuge in Sudan. “This refugee influx comes on top of an already complex and critical humanitarian emergency in the country, affecting 3 million people, of which 1.8 million are children,” the press release reads.