Introduction
in mid-April 2023, fighting started in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF); violence has been widespread in the Country until today. Both groups are now locked in a brutal struggle for power, battling for control of the country’s major institutions. The crisis resulted into killing of more than 3,000 people and forced more than 3,000,000 from Sudan to the neighboring countries. This conflict has caused one of the worst disasters of 2023. The conflict has turned its ugly face by targeting women and girls with sexual abuse, destruction of Christian churches, mosques and property and widespread looting of businesses and homes.
For more than four month of intensive fighting in the Capital City, the violent conflict spread into majority of the Sudanese states. South Kordofan – Nuba Mountains, Blue Nile and Darfur are the most hit states by this conflict. According to many credible sources on the ground where Compassion + Sustainable Development Africa is working in Both Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile, there are more than 68,000 IDPs/returnees from the SAF controlled areas into Nuba Mountains alone; and more than 34,000 people also entered into Blue Nile areas controlled by the SPLA/North faction of Commander Abdulaziz Adan Alhilu. This faction has been engaged heavily in battle with SAF and RSF in major towns like Kadugli the Capital city of South Kordofan as well as Dilling; on the other hand, there has been serious war also in the areas surrounding Kurmuk. The fighting is continuing up to date amid news of causalities from all parties in the war.
Nuba Mountains
As routine exercise, the head of senior management team to visit an IDP/ returnees camp in a place called Aggiri in Engpoung County. According to the camp manager, this camp was established in the month of May 2023 and it is hosting more than 3,400 households from various ethnic groups that fled Khartoum City. While interviewing some of them, they mentioned how difficult it was their journey, they had to pass SAF and RSF territories, they were physically and psychologically abused by SAF and RSF because they are native Nuba people of African origin. All of them testified that they had some of their valuable properties looted, some who refused; they were beaten others were killed and others got their bones broken due to torture.
Some of the women spoke of seeing and heard of women and small girls being raped by those soldiers in order to be allowed out to travel to Nuba Mountains. So many heart breaking stories were spoken to say the least. It is certain that SAF and RSF are violating human rights with impunity against African indigenous people in Nuba.
People in the camp are in need, they do not want to travel ahead to South Sudan as refugees. They said if there are basic needs for them to keep until the dry season, they would prefer staying in Nuba Mountains. The camp itself is prone to Aerial bombardment of the SAF should SPLA/N captured the main town Kadugli as a revenge measure. This camp is lacking everything, as rain falls continue during this wed season, most IDPs/returnees do not have plastic sheets to cover from the rain, they do not have Mosquito nets to protect them, they do not have enough NFIs for Cooking, no floor mats to sleep on them, no blankets to cover the children, they do not have enough sanitation items and facilities, health conditions are very poor due to lack of health care unit with medicine, there is no drilled clean, safe and enough water source. They do not have enough food for their children they rely on casual labor for their income and livelihoods. Of course you cannot talk about education here, this is a real tragedy and they are in desperate situation that call for urgent humanitarian intervention.
Blue Nile
The head of senior management team has been engaged with local pastors and community leaders from Blue Nile. The contact persons reported dire situation facing the IDPs and returnees who fled from areas surrounding Kurmuk town. the needs are overwhelming in Blue Nile due to the current war which caused forced displacements of large population, the rainy season conditions made it worst, the IDPS and the returnees do not have any kind of shelter simply because there are no plastic sheets, the few that comes from Ethiopia are too expensive and the people do not have money to buy them in order to put up some sort of shelter for their children to somehow protect them from the rain falls. There are no NFIs like plastic sheets, floor mats and blankets to be used to protect children and family members.
Our contacts on the ground reported continuous the existence of mass influx of the IDPs with desperate conditions, some are sick, others are very hungry and they do not have livestock to survive on them.
The local population are not in position to aid or assist those new comers. This is because the harvest of the year 2022 was too poor due to the effects of climate change. The situation is really dire on the ground and the pastor said ‘I have never seen something like this, people are really suffering and we do not have anything to help them, the conditions are catastrophic but we are helpless as well; there is too much distressing’.
One community leader narrated the situation of aerial bombardment saying ‘‘the aerial bombardment happened in the beginning of the war around Kurmuk areas, many people were driven out by these bombardment, we lost many people, there are many others who have sustained injuries, we lost our livestock because everybody was running for their dear life, I don’t know why the SAF is targeting mere villagers who have no weapons nor are involved in the current war, I urge our friends and well-wishers abroad to come for our rescue, there is no one protecting us or helping us to survive this great danger. We need this war to stop now’’.
Project Objectives:
The project objective is:
- To alleviate suffering from the IDPs and returnees through food and non-food items as a measure for live-saving effort.
- To enable IDPs and returnees recover from the emergency situation.
Project Outcome:
IDPs and returnees in Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile are able to build resilience and positively cope with the emergency humanitarian crisis caused by the current civil war in Sudan.
Project Output:
- 400 households of IDPs and returnees supported with 400 bags of a 100 Kgs.
- 400 most destitute IDPs and returnees supported with 450 pieces of plastic Sheets.
- 400 households of IDPs and returnees supported with 400 pieces of blankets.
- 400 households of IDPs and returnees supported with 400 pieces of floor mats.
These assistances particularly food items are expected to last for 3 months; whereas the NFIs will last for most then 2 years.
The target Beneficiaries:
400 households will benefit from the humanitarian assistance in the Two Area namely Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile. These households are mainly IDPs and returnees who fled war from the frontlines and arrived in the SPLA/N controlled areas.
Implementation Plan:
- C+SDA management will administer procurement procedures through its procurement committee in order to reach the most competitive market prices of purchasing and transporting project items to the Two Areas.
- Identification and selection of the beneficiaries will be done by village relief committees (VRCs) made up of inter-community committees in the Two areas respectively, local church leaders and representatives of the local authorities – Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Agency (SRRA). Whereas the verification of the beneficiaries will be done by C+SDA staff in cooperation with the SRRA representatives in the Two Areas respectively.
- Distribution of the project items will be done by the VRCs with the supervision of the C+SDA staff and the SRRA representatives in the Two Areas respectively.
- Project’s administrative responsibilities, compiling reports and monitoring activities are the roles of C+SDA senior management team.
In conclusion
C+SDA continues to appeal for more humanitarian assistance for the people in Blue Nile and in the Nuba Mountains so that we are able to support the efforts of live-saving. We are hopeful of a change in the situation when the war stops, but we do not know when this war will end so that people could return to their home areas and start rebuilding their lives again.