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Darfur, Sudan -- Humanitarian Situation and CWS Response

A family uprooted by Janjaweed violence in the Ta'asha area of South Darfur, Sudan.

Photo: Nils Carstensen/ACT-Caritas

Current Humanitarian Situation:

Number of persons affected by the conflict is almost 3 million (according to U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
Number of refugees in Camps (Chad) is 200,000.
Number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Darfur approximately 1.85 million.
Number of persons receiving food assistance in Darfur is 2.1 million.
Estimated deaths thus far are estimated to be between 250,000-400,000.

Situation on the Ground:

Darfur is in western Sudan and covers one-fifth of the country. It is home to 7 million people. The region lacks basic infrastructure and services.
Banditry and attacks are hindering the ability of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to respond. African Union troops are helping in the areas where they are located, but there are not enough to cover the region.
The World Food Program is providing food to 60-70% of those in need. While this is substantial given the challenges, it means that 30-40% of those in need do not have food.
The situation for those in Darfur is expected to get worse as low rainfall and failing harvest for the past two years have left most with minimal reserves.
Diseases common in this area include malaria, diarrhea, and respiratory infections. However, in camps, we also see outbreaks of hepatitis and high rates of malnutrition -- especially among the vulnerable children under 5.

Church World Service Response:

CWS is responding in Darfur through an international alliance of NGOs from the U.S., Europe, and Sudan. We are helping some 325,000 people directly in addition to hospitals and health centers serving up to 250,000 and water projects for additional communities. Total operations for this year will cost $35,298,685.

Alliance activities, supported in part by CWS:

Non-food items: providing immediate assistance with sleeping materials including mosquito nets, mats, and blankets, and kitchen utensils, soap, sanitary supplies, and jerry cans (for water).
Shelter: providing plastic sheeting, family shelter materials, and construction supplies.
Water: drilling 100 new borehole wells, rehabilitating 20 existing wells, building 30 new shallow wells, rehabilitating 45 shallow wells, providing 20 water storage bladders (each able to hold 10,000 liters) and water tankers when necessary.
Sanitation: provide 2,500 pit latrine toilet arrangements. Health educators and community teams will also provide sanitation and hygiene classes to camps and communities. Hygiene kits will be distributed as well.
Supplementary feeding: providing supplementary feeding centers and community-based therapeutic feeding centers for severely malnourished children and pregnant/lactating women. CWS partners operate 15 nutritional centers in South and West Darfur.
Primary Health Care: construction/rehabilitation of 23 primary health clinics and two rural hospitals. This includes equipping them with staff, drugs, medical supplies, materials, and furniture and strengthening the capacity of local health services.
Protection: focuses on providing access to quality services and a safe environment where people can express their needs or concerns on any issue.
Psychosocial assistance: working to reestablish traditional coping strategies, as well as training staff on counseling and listening skills, grief, trauma, and culturally specific issues.
Education: rehabilitate 16 school facilities in IDP-affected communities. This includes rehabilitation of school latrines, providing school materials, uniforms, equipment, furniture, and teacher training. Another six temporary school facilities or shelters will be constructed within IDP camps.

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