South Sudanese refugees in East Darfur to be relocated

More than 30,000 South Sudanese refugees living in the Khor Omer camp in East Darfur, will be relocated to a new site.

Since January 2016, an estimated 89,300 South Sudanese fleeing conflict and food insecurity in their home country have arrived in parts of Sudan. Almost 55,000 of them sought shelter in East Darfur, where the Khor Omer camp near the state capital of Ed Daein has become overcrowded.

The Sudanese Red Crescent Society (SRCS) and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) started the demarcation of the new site in El Kariyo, 45 kilometres from Ed Daein, on 20 July.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Sudan reports in its latest weekly bulletin that an information campaign is being carried out to inform the refugee community in Khor Omer about the relocation, and UNHCR is planning to take community leaders to explore the new site.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) delivered two mini-surgical kits and essential medications Khor Omer Primary Health Centre. According to WHO, health needs in Khor Omer camp are reportedly fully covered at present.

El Ferdous

An estimated 6,000 South Sudanese refugees from Raja have sought shelter in Abu Sinaidira in East Darfur's El Ferdous locality. An inter-agency needs assessment conducted among these refugees in early July, has identified significant gaps in the availability of health care, including essential drugs and medical equipment.

Although the East Darfur Ministry of Health has been providing emergency drugs for children under the age of five free of charge, most refugees could not afford medical consultations, treatment or purchase of drugs. Food is also insufficient, with adult refugees reportedly consuming one meal per day. According to the assessment, approximately 79 percent of the refugees in Abu Sinaidira are children. There are no latrines in the area, and open defecation remains prevalent.

The refugees are currently living in an open area without any cover; construction of emergency shelters is urgently needed. Government and humanitarian actors have developed an action plan to address the urgent needs identified across different sectors as soon as possible. WFP and UNHCR have provided food and non-food items.

Since the assessment was carried out, many of the refugees have been reportedly leaving Abu Sinaidira to various locations including El Ferdous town, Ed Daein, and an old informal camp called Raja near Ed Daein. Authorities plan to relocate the South Sudanese in the Raja site to a new location in El Nimir where further humanitarian assistance will be provided.

OCHA reports that because of the high mobility of the South Sudanese refugees in East Darfur, it is difficult to map their locations. To gain a better understanding of the number and location of the refugees, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is planning to carry out several verification missions simultaneously in Abu Sinaidira, El Ferdous, Abu Matarig, and Abu Jabra this week.