number of darfur people in critical need of relief has risen

 

by 10 per cent, according to new United Nations report

 

NEW YORK, 22 October (OCHA) -- A new report from the United Nations in the Sudan says that the number of people in Darfur now in critical need of relief has risen nearly 10 per cent in the past month, even as the humanitarian response in the war-torn region intensifies.  This increase means that 2 million of Darfur’s  6 million people are now affected by the crisis.

“Thousands more people have been abandoning their homes after fighting and violence in their villages.  Though we are steadily increasing the amount of aid we deliver to Darfur, we are constantly running to catch up with growing needs”, said Jan Egeland, the United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator.

A humanitarian report issued by the United Nations shows that as of 30 September, there were 2 million known conflict-affected persons requiring assistance in Darfur, compared to 1.8 million from the previous month.  These figures do not include some 200,000 refugees from Darfur now in Chad.  Of the 2 million figures, some 1.6 million are internally displaced persons.

Some 150,000 people were counted as new internally displaced persons in Darfur in September 2004 alone.  There are several causes for the increase in the number of conflict-affected people over the past months.  These include increased access by United Nations and other aid organizations into Sudanese Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) rebel-controlled areas, ongoing insecurity in North and South Darfur, and a magnet effect drawing people into safer locations where humanitarian agencies can register them for assistance.

An Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)-led assessment in early October on both sides along a stretch of railway, also in South Darfur, found thousands of people who fled their villages just weeks ago after reportedly being attacked by militias.  They are living in makeshift shelters, and basic supplies such as food and water donated by nearby residents are running dangerously thin.  Furthermore, tens of thousands of people who need aid are inaccessible at any given time due to insecurity, including banditry, fighting between government and rebel forces, and militia attacks.  The work of humanitarian agencies continues to be constrained by security problems, as the level of harassment of relief workers has been on the rise for several weeks.

“But the news is not all bad.  Aid agencies have made tremendous strides over the past month by boosting their presence on the ground and reaching more people living in previously inaccessible territory”, said Mr. Egeland.  The number of humanitarian personnel has tripled since July.  More than 6,000 national and international aid workers are now battling hunger and disease in Darfur.  “In absolute terms, the humanitarian community is assisting more people with life-saving aid.  As we gear up, we are able to reach isolated areas where thousands of families are desperate for assistance.”  Last month, an estimated 70 per cent of the conflict-affected population was provided with food; 52 per cent received shelter and other critical survival items; 40 per cent had access to clean water; 42 per cent had access to latrines; and 67 per cent were covered by primary health-care facilities.

United Nations humanitarian operations in Darfur and Chad remain under-funded, with nearly $190 million still needed through the end of 2004.

For further information, please call: Elizabeth Byrs, OCHA Geneva, tel:  +41 22 917 2653, Mobile: +41 79 473 4570; Stephanie Bunker, OCHA New York, tel:  +1 917 892 1679, Mobile 917 892 1679; Radhia Achouri, UNAMIS, +249 9 123 92270 Web: http://www.unsudanig.org

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