Almost three weeks after the outbreak of war in Sudan, thousands of displaced people from Sudan are in need of humanitarian assistance in Northern Bahr El Ghazal State.
Over 2,700 Sudanese refugees and 1, 550 South Sudanese fleeing from Sudan arrived Sunday, April 30, 2023, from Sudan in Kiir Adem of Northern Bahr El Ghazal state.
More people are expected to arrive in the state due to the continuation of the war in the Sundanese region of Darfur.
Some refugees who spoke to the press expressed their ordeal and appealed for humanitarian assistance.
“I am Chief Sheik El Jack Rashid, we came here as a result of fighting that escalated from El-Fasher to Nyala, Al Obied, and Al-Junaynah, those people come from there. We don’t have any shelter, water, and food,” said the Sudanese refugee.
He added that: “We are appealing to the NGOs and UN agencies to provide for us food assistance.”
“I came here from Eastern Darfur from the Locality of Bahr Al Arab of Al-Junaynah we are the mother of children and refugees, we don’t have food and water, and we are also sick,” said another refugee who identified herself as Halima Bushra.
“We are refugees from Al-Junaynah, Al Fahsir, and Nyala, we don’t have food and water, we have elderly people and we don’t have anything to survive with,” Dokrey Yousf Khamis Abdul Seed Bakar said.
“We are appealing to President Salva Kiir that we belong to you and South Sudan as refugees and we need assistance as affected people and we don’t have anything,” she added.
However yesterday, the Northern Bahr el Ghazal State government visited the refugees and returnees to assess their humanitarian situation.
The delegation was comprised of the state minister of information, the Chairperson of the Relief and Rehabilitation Commission, Victorino Keen Akoon, and the Commissioner of Aweil North County.
According to the state officials, the humanitarian situation of the civilians is dire, and they require quick intervention from the government and the humanitarian partners.
William Anyuon Kuol, Northern Bahr el Ghazal state information minister says the returnees and refugees lack shelter, food, water, and medicines.
“The situation of these people has worsened, the number has increased when we first received them they were about 310 households and those were returnees,” said Anyuon.
“The number has increased after refugees from Sudan arrived. They were 1, 000 but now 2,700,” he added.
Meanwhile, the state Chairperson of the Relief and Rehabilitation Commission Dut Majokdit emphasized the need to support the refugees and returnees as soon as possible.
“They [refugeees/returnees] lack shelters and most of them are children, breastfeeding mothers, pregnant women, and elderly mothers. They are suffering because they come empty-handed, and it’s time now for them to be supported,” said Majokdit.
“I urged the national government particularly the minister of humanitarian affairs to make sure that these people are supported,
“We will do what we can do as state government to make sure that these people are given food and shelter. They will relocate to a place safe for them to establish a camp.”