Sudan: Red Cross visits Darfur and South Kordofan to assess humanitarian needs

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) completed a preliminary assessment of the humanitarian needs in Central Darfur and South Kordofan, the ICRC announced in a statement today. The Sudanese Red Crescent Society (SRCS) headquarters and branch representatives participated in the assessment mission.

The statement says that the ICRC teams embarked on this mission after it was granted access by the Sudanese government to resume its field humanitarian activities. “In the course of this mission, the teams met the state level authorities, community leaders and displaced people, in order to get the necessary information on the needs of the affected communities and start designing projects, one in each state, to address some of the more pressing needs in the remainder of 2017.”

The statement points out that the ICRC is also currently working on defining possible field assistance activities for 2018, together with its partners at the SRCS, concerned line ministries and state level authorities.

“Throughout this process, the ICRC has been working closely with all concerned authorities and the SRCS on how best to resume its humanitarian work in the field, in accordance with its working modalities, principles and capacity, to address humanitarian needs in conflict-affected areas,” said the Head of the ICRC delegation in Khartoum, Kedir Awol Omar.

The ICRC has been working in Sudan since 1978, assisting victims of armed conflicts and aiming at protecting and preserving their dignity. It works closely with the SRCS to build their capacity in order to help conflict-affected communities become self-sufficient and reunite families separated by conflicts or other situations of violence.

It also works closely with the national authority on prosthetics and orthotics in order to provide physical rehabilitation services. The ICRC is also engaged with the authorities, Sudan Armed Forces, the police and academic circles in the promotion of and respect for international humanitarian law.