The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Wednesday that about 386,973 people, of which 83 percent are South Sudanese nationals have crossed into South Sudan since outbreak of conflict in neighboring Sudan on April 15.
OCHA said in it’s latest report on the situation in Sudan, released in Juba that half of the arrivals are female, and children under 18 years of age, adding that Sudanese refugees account for only 16 percent of the arrivals.
“The number of Sudanese refugees and asylum seekers arriving at Wunthow/Joda has reduced
compared to previous weeks, this is partly attributed to the biometric registration which prevents
double counting of arrivals,” it said.
OCHA revealed that border monitoring teams observed a decrease of 16 percent in the arrival of
Sudanese refugee asylum seekers over the past two weeks from over 3,056 between 2 and 8 November to 2,557 between 9 and 15 November.
It said that most of the arrivals are entering through 22 points of entry that are monitored.
OCHA said that 83 percent of the people are arriving through Wunthow/Joda near Renk in Upper Nile State, 16 percent through Panakuach in Unity State and 1 percent through Kir Adem in Northern Bahr el Ghazal State respectively.
It disclosed that humanitarian organizations are currently facilitating onward transportation assistance of 7,000 to 10,000 people on weekly basis from Wunthow/Joda to Renk by bus, 3,100 weekly from Renk to Malakal by boat, and 2,000 weekly by air from Malakal to different locations across the country.
OCHA noted that about 150,486 people have been facilitated to move since April which represents less than half of all arrivals.
“As a result, there are a backlog of people in Renk and Malakal awaiting onward transportation
assistance to reach their destinations of choice,” it said.
It disclosed that onward transportation assistance remains the most critical need in this response, adding that facilitating people’s onward transportation will reduce the need for shelter, water and food
in Renk and other key locations, and also reduce overcrowding at the various transit centers with the associated risk of spread of disease.
It also said that the planned relocation of Sudanese refugees to Maban refugee camp remains on hold due to flooded and impassable roads which require repair.
“As a result of the higher-than-expected refugee arrivals, there is congestion in Renk transit center. The road between Maban and Renk requires urgent repair,” OCHA said.
In addition, it noted that the ongoing conflict in Sudan and the current flooding, inter-communal
violence and criminality in South Sudan have disrupted supply lines to Abyei Administrative Area.
“This has resulted in a steady price increase, thus, reducing access of returnees and host communities to basic commodities,” OCHA said.
