North Darfur displaced reject outcome of WFP survey

Young leaders in the six Kabkabiya camps for the displaced in North Darfur have refused to accept the results of the survey and classification of the camp residents conducted by the UN World Food Programme (WFP) last year.

Two years ago, the WFP started a survey among the displaced in the Darfur camps determining the standard of living of the households in three categories: eligible for regular food rations, eligible for humanitarian aid every six months, and ineligible.

“Last year, 16,676 displaced families were categorised in this way,” a youth activist told Radio Dabanga on Friday. “7,020 households were considered eligible for food for a year, 5,057 will receive food aid for six months, and 4,800 families were considered not eligible.”

He said that the youths have requested the WFP in Sudan to reconsider the outcomes of the survey, and provide food assistance to all the people in the camps “even if that would lead to the reduction of the individual food rations, as all the displaced have no resources to depend on.

“The people do not dare to leave the camps to collect firewood to sell things or search for odd jobs because of the rampant insecurity in the area,” he explained.

The youth activist further claimed that the food aid will be stopped after 2017.

Zamzam camp

The 125,500 residents of Zamzam camp for the displaced, south of the North Darfur capital of El Fasher, were also classified into three categories last year.

“The people do not dare to leave the camps to collect firewood to sell things or search for odd jobs because of the rampant insecurity in the area.”

A Zamzam camp elder told Radio Dabanga that representatives of the WFP, accompanied by agents of the Sudanese Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC) met with the camp leaders on Tuesday.

“They informed us that the food distribution to 40 percent of the displaced will immediately be stopped. About 23 percent will receive food rations for six months. The food aid for the third category of eligible people will be stopped after one year.

“The camp leaders told the WFP and HAC officials that they “categorically reject the scaling-down of the food distributions because the security, economic, and social conditions of the displaced do not allow this,” he said.