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2013 UNHCR country operations profile - Sudan
Working environment
The context
The operating environment in Sudan, where displacement and population movements occur continuously, is extremely challenging. UNHCR's work in the country covers four distinct situations: Khartoum; the Protocol Areas; eastern Sudan; and Darfur. The population of concern includes around 2.3 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), some 140,000 refugees, 7,000 asylum-seekers and an estimated hundreds of thousands persons at risk of statelessness. Most are refugees from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Somalia, but there is also a very large population of IDPs in Darfur, Khartoum and the east.
In 2012 UNHCR successfully launched the Transitional Solutions Initiative (TSI) with UNDP and the World Bank, in close partnership with the Sudanese Government, to promote self-reliance among some 77,000 long-staying refugees in eastern Sudan. UNHCR also began to implement a project with IOM and the local authorities to address the trafficking, smuggling and kidnapping of refugees and asylum-seekers in eastern Sudan.
Since the independence of South Sudan in 2011, disagreements over oil-sharing between Sudan and South Sudan and the shutting down of oil exports have caused high inflation in Sudan. Moreover, fighting in the Protocol Areas led to internal displacement in the border regions as well as a large outflow of refugees into Ethiopia and South Sudan in 2011 and 2012.
The Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD), which was signed by the Government and one of the rebel groups in 2011, and the continuing voluntary returns of IDPs and refugees, are promising developments. However, violence in Darfur in July and August 2012 caused more internal displacement.
Following the secession of South Sudan, Sudanese nationality was automatically withdrawn from individuals of South Sudanese origin in Sudan. UNHCR is working to reduce the risk of statelessness for these groups by helping the Government of South Sudan to deliver documentation to its nationals in Sudan.
In April 2012, UNHCR assumed responsibility for the Emergency Shelter/Non-Food Items (ES-NFIs) sector in Sudan, including the Common Humanitarian Pipeline for Darfur.
However, from April to August 2012 Government-imposed restrictions on the movement of non-food items from warehouses to areas of displacement affected the ability of UNHCR and its partners to assist people of concern.
The needs
Refugees and the local community in eastern Sudan face acute poverty and lack of access to health care, education and employment. Refugees also face difficulties in integrating locally, and there is no possibility of voluntary repatriation at this time. Persistent drought has degraded the land and shrunk pasture lands, leading to malnutrition among refugees and host communities. Meanwhile, the 1,800 new refugees and asylum-seekers arriving each month brave often violent traffickers, smugglers and kidnappers.
Though many IDPs have returned in 2012 to their places of origin in Darfur, most return areas still lack basic services and infrastructure, and some 2.3 million people continue to remain displaced.
Approximately 34,000 Chadian refugees in Darfur, of whom 8,000 are in camps, also require basic assistance.
Unresolved post-independence issues have led to fighting and displacement in the Protocol Areas. The displaced suffer from malnutrition and lack of access to basic services due to disruption of the agricultural cycle and the breakdown of social services.
There are hundreds of thousands South Sudanese still living in Sudan. They are of mixed Sudanese-South Sudanese or unknown origin, but are unable to prove their entitlement to the nationality and are therefore at risk of statelessness.
| UNHCR 2013 planning figures for Sudan | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TYPE OF POPULATION | ORIGIN | JAN 2013 | DEC 2013 | ||
| TOTAL IN COUNTRY | OF WHOM ASSISTED BY UNHCR |
TOTAL IN COUNTRY | OF WHOM ASSISTED BY UNHCR |
||
| Total | 2,828,650 | 1,874,340 | 2,954,950 | 1,975,140 | |
| Refugees | Chad | 8,300 | 8,300 | 8,500 | 8,500 |
| Eritrea | 115,000 | 88,500 | 125,000 | 69,000 | |
| Ethiopia | 5,000 | 550 | 5,500 | 600 | |
| Various | 600 | 120 | 800 | 150 | |
| Persons in refugee-like situations | Chad | 25,000 | 10,000 | 15,000 | 5,000 |
| Various | 3,000 | 1,500 | 3,000 | 1,500 | |
| Asylum-seekers | DRC | 150 | 150 | 100 | 100 |
| Eritrea | 2,600 | 50 | 2,800 | 80 | |
| Ethiopia | 3,300 | 70 | 3,500 | 100 | |
| Various | 700 | 100 | 750 | 110 | |
| Returnees (refugees) | Sudan | 20,000 | 20,000 | 80,000 | 80,000 |
| IDPs | Sudan | 2,300,000 | 1,400,000 | 2,300,000 | 1,400,000 |
| Returnees (IDPs) | Sudan | 345,000 | 345,000 | 410,000 | 410,000 |
Main objectives and targets for 2013
Community empowerment and self-reliance
Access to financial services is facilitated and vocational training provided.
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Refugees in eastern Sudan have increased access to livelihood opportunities, and vocational training.
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Some 3,400 refugees in eastern Sudan have more access to financial services (including loans).
Favourable protection environment
Laws and policies are developed or strengthened.
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Law and practice in Sudan on statelessness is consistent with international standards.
Fair protection processes and documentation
The quality of registration and profiling is improved or maintained.
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Some 85 per cent of refugees are registered on an individual basis.
Security from violence and exploitation
The protection and care of new arrivals, in particular of victims of smuggling and/or trafficking, is strengthened.
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All identified victims of human trafficking, kidnapping, trauma and/or sexual violence, as well as all unaccompanied or separated children, are protected, individually registered and referred to relevant services.
Basic needs and essential services
Primary and secondary education is provided to refugees.
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All school-aged refugee children in camps are enrolled in primary and secondary school.
Shelters and infrastructure are established, improved or maintained.
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Some 90 per cent of refugees in camps in the East and Darfur live in adequate dwellings.
The supply of potable water is increased or maintained.
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Around 90 per cent of refugees in Darfur and Eastern Sudan receive 20 litres of potable water per person per day.
Durable solutions
The potential for voluntary return is realized.
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All IDPs in Darfur who intend to return in 2013 do so voluntarily.
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Some 700 field monitoring missions are undertaken.
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Coexistence programmes are promoted with the help of development, government and other actors.
Strategy and activities in 2013
In eastern Sudan, UNHCR will promote the socio-economic integration of the refugees in the region by implementing self-reliance and livelihood projects. It will jointly implement the Transitional Solutions Initiative with UNDP and the World Bank in order to boost self-reliance, the most viable solution for this population.
New arrivals will receive shelter and basic services. Throughout 2013, UNHCR and IOM will jointly implement a project to combat the trafficking, smuggling and kidnapping of asylum-seekers in eastern Sudan.
UNHCR will address statelessness by providing technical advice to the Sudanese authorities and support the Government of South Sudan to issue nationality documentation in Sudan. It will also monitor the protection of those at risk of statelessness. Advocacy for the provision of assistance to South Sudanese stranded at departure points, as well as protection monitoring and the provision of life-saving assistance to extremely vulnerable individuals, will continue in 2013. UNHCR will help the authorities to address the needs for refugee status determination (RSD), documentation, basic supplies and employment among urban refugees.
In Darfur, UNHCR will provide refugees with nutritional, health and livelihood assistance in the camps. It will assist its governmental counterpart, the Commissioner for Refugees, to issue documentation to refugees. UNHCR will also build the capacity of local Government officials to provide adequate legal and physical protection to IDPs, refugees and asylum-seekers by training them in refugee law, RSD and registration and familiarizing them with the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement.
UNHCR will work with partners to promote trust and peacebuilding between neighbouring communities, including nomads and farmers who compete for scarce resources. As protection sector and ES-NFIs sector lead, and co-lead for IDP returns, UNHCR will coordinate humanitarian interventions to address gaps in those areas.
Access to the Protocol Areas remains problematic, but UNHCR will continue to co-lead the protection sector with the Ministry of Welfare and Social Security. While other humanitarian partners are reducing their operations in Darfur, UNHCR maintains its unique deep-field presence, operating from seven field offices, which in 2011 conducted more than 700 field missions.
Constraints
Although the Government of Sudan allowed certain humanitarian organizations to return to the Protocol Areas in 2012, areas of activity were restricted. Furthermore, high levels of insecurity deterred progress in assisting those affected by the violence. It is likely that unresolved tensions will continue to cause conflict in 2013, particularly in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states, leading to more displacement and the outflow of refugees into South Sudan.
Although the general security situation has improved in Darfur, particularly in West Darfur, sporadic fighting continues in certain areas and the level of criminality has risen to include car-jacking and the abduction of aid workers. This creates new displacement and hinders humanitarian access to populations of concern. The lack of basic services in areas of return also discourages returns.
Organization and implementation
Coordination
UNHCR will continue to engage with local authorities and central government entities such as the ministries of the Interior, Foreign Affairs and Justice. As sector lead, UNHCR will coordinate the response for protection, ES-NFIs, return and reintegration. It will work with its traditional partners, WFP, UNFPA, UNICEF and OCHA, as well as strengthen alliances with international and national NGOs. The latter are crucial to the task of providing protection and assistance in areas where UNHCR has limited access.
In eastern Sudan, UNHCR will reinforce its partnership with UNDP and the World Bank on TSI activities. It will also work with IOM to address trafficking issues. As leader of the protection sector, UNHCR will collaborate with sub-cluster leads such as UNFPA for gender-based violence and UNICEF for child protection. In Darfur, UNHCR will participate in the Joint Verification Mechanism.
Financial information
Between 2008 and 2011, the total budget for Sudan increased from USD 110 million to USD 232.5 million due to steady growth in both the annual and supplementary programmes. The seemingly large drop in 2012, to USD 133.9 million, is attributable to the split between Sudan and South Sudan.
In 2013 the needs in Sudan are estimated at USD 116.7 million.
Source: UNHCR Global Appeal 2013 Update


