Funding woes: aid organisations leave West Darfur

As of January 2016, Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) and Intersos closed their offices in West Darfur because of a lack of funding.

IRW was providing food, health, water and sanitation, education, emergency shelters, household supplies, and livelihood assistance in El Geneina, Kereinik and Beida localities, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Sudan reports in its latest weekly bulletin.

Intersos operated in Habila and Foro Baranga localities in the field of water, sanitation and hygiene, as well as peace-building activities.

The two INGOs have handed over their activities to the respective state government Ministries, the bulletin reads.

In May last year, the Fellowship for African Relief (FAR) phased out of West Darfur in West Darfur because of limited funding. Other humanitarian partners in the state scaled down their operations for the same reason.

The reduced humanitarian assistance has affected the quality and quantity of services provided in the camps for the displaced and in areas of voluntary return.