United Nations in South Sudan

The Sustainable Development Goals are a global call to action to end poverty, protect the earth’s environment and climate, and ensure that people everywhere can enjoy peace and prosperity. These are also the goals the UN is working for in South Sudan:

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27 June 2022

South Sudan UN Common Country Analysis (CCA)

South Sudan faces serious challenges in all areas of sustainable development. In the political sphere, significant progress has been achieved since 2018 when the R-ARCSS was signed. However, there are very important tasks such as the graduation of unified forces that remain to be completed. The population remains highly exposed to repeated and deliberate attacks on civilians and their property, as well as other violations of international, humanitarian and human rights including sexual exploitation and abuse or more broadly conflict-related gender-based violence, among others. These happen with widespread impunity because institutions and the rule of law is extremely weak, which can easily create a vicious cycle leading to more violence. Linked to this, after many years of conflict and violence there is widespread trauma in a high share of the population, especially those most vulnerable. The precarious security situation creates incentives that preclude consumption (e.g. those who can afford often prefer to neighboring countries) and investment (e.g. in the agricultural sector: if someone’s land can be grabbed any time, s/he will hardly invest in it). Food insecurity is very high despite the country’s generally fertile soil, and over 8 million people (most of the country’s population) are estimated in need of some sort of humanitarian assistance. Humanitarian needs are often linked to population movements, including new and secondary displacements derived from sub-national conflict, and floods that have increasingly affected South Sudan for several years in a row, e.g. in 2021 the worst flooding in decades has affected some 700,000 people, with the gravest impact on the most vulnerable populations. There are about 1.7 million internally displaced people (IDP) and 1.7 million IDP returnees, as well as over 2.3 million refugees and asylum seekers in neighboring countries. More than 387,000 refugees have spontaneously returned since the signing of the R-ARCSS in 2018. South Sudan also hosts some 329,000 refugees, the vast majority of whom are from Sudan. Social indicators, especially those on access to the most basic services such as healthcare, education, water and sanitation and social protection are amongst the worst in the world (even more so for vulnerable groups such as women and especially girls, the elderly, persons with disabilities, etc.). About three quarters of the population are estimated to live in extreme poverty.

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13 January 2021

UN and humanitarian partners come together to respond to the devastating floods of 2020

Over a million people were affected by flooding in 2020 and entire communities, mostly in areas along the Nile, fled to higher ground to escape the flood waters. Close to half a million people were displaced, with women and children most affected. In August, the Government declared a state of emergency in flood-affected areas. People in Jonglei State and the Greater Pibor Administrative Area, were hardest hit by the flooding and were already vulnerable, having earlier been displaced by sub-national violence. Villages and people’s homes were submerged by the flood waters, destroying people’s crops and killing their livestock. Infrastructure and public facilities did not escape the waters. Hundreds of schools and health and nutrition centers were damaged, compromising essential services to communities. Key immediate needs of flood-affected people included food, water purification tablets, plastic sheeting for temporary shelter, mosquito nets, fishing kits, basic health items and the replenishment of medicine, nutritional supplies and dignity kits. Coordinated by OCHA, humanitarian response operations were scaled up from July onward to meet the needs of the most vulnerable people, with funding from the UN’s Central Emergency Response Fund and the South Sudan Humanitarian Fund, among other sources. Using limited resources, people were provided with emergency flood response kits. Hundreds of thousands of people were reached with food assistance and livelihood support. Displaced people received plastic sheeting for temporary shelter, water, sanitation and hygiene support, and protection services. Humanitarian organizations on the ground – most of them South Sudanese – worked tirelessly as the needs rose along with the flood waters, but faced many challenges. Flood response activities were constrained by insecurity that forced some local partners to put the flood response on hold. Persistent heavy rains made roads impassable and flooded airstrips, putting an extra burden on transporting aid to where it was needed the most. The waters are now slowly receding, but people’s needs still remain. The United Nations, non-governmental organizations and the local authorities continue to work together to help flood-affected people return to their homes and livelihoods as soon as possible. Further investments will be required in 2021 to strengthen people’s capacity to cope with recurring shocks, including flooding.

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UN Agencies provide emergency relief to people displaced by floods

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22 December 2020

UN agencies’ alarm at worsening hunger in South Sudan

Three United Nations organizations are calling for immediate humanitarian access to parts of South Sudan’s Pibor County in Jonglei State, where people have run out of food and are facing catastrophic levels of hunger according to a new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report released today. The high levels of hunger are being driven by insecurity, the effects of COVID-19, the economic crisis, and the impact of flooding on livelihoods, the report said. Humanitarian assistance is needed to save lives and avert a total collapse of livelihoods in hard-to-reach areas. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme (WFP) are scaling up their response, along with other humanitarian aid organizations. “We call on all parties to stop the violence and to ensure safe humanitarian access in order to prevent an already dire situation from turning into a full-blown catastrophe,” FAO Representative in South Sudan Meshack Malo said. “We are extremely concerned about the increased numbers of children suffering from severe acute malnutrition. These children need urgent treatment to prevent them from dying. The data leave us with no doubt about the sense of urgency for all of us - Government, donor community and humanitarian actors - to join hands and ensure all these children get the treatment they need. At the same time, we need to invest more in actions to prevent children from becoming malnourished in the first place,” UNICEF Representative in South Sudan Mohamed Ayoya said. “WFP is extremely worried about the rising numbers of people suffering because of the lack of sufficient food and nutrition, intensified conflict, unprecedented flooding and high food prices. The coming year will be extremely tough, but we are determined to do all we can to reach more people for longer periods of time," said Makena Walker, Deputy Country Director of the World Food Programme in South Sudan. Extreme hunger in parts of Pibor county Figures in today’s report estimate that between October and November, 6.5 million people in South Sudan faced severe acute food insecurity and are in need of urgent assistance. This number is projected to grow to 7.24 million between April and July 2021. Today’s report comes after two independent reports published by the IPC Global Support Unit last week which indicated that tens of thousands of people are likely to face famine conditions in Pibor county. In this situation, many families are experiencing high levels of acute malnutrition and even mortality. In another five counties (Akobo, Aweil South, Tonj East, Tonj North and Tonj South), some communities are facing catastrophic conditions, the independent analysis found. Around 1.4 million children aged between 6 months and 5 years are expected to be acutely malnourished in 2021 and will need life-saving treatment, according to today’s report. This includes 313 000 children suffering from severe acute malnutrition and more than a million children suffering from moderate acute malnutrition. At the same time, 483 000 pregnant or breastfeeding women are acutely malnourished and in need of treatment. Emergency response WFP has already begun scaling up its lifesaving food and nutritional assistance to critically food insecure areas in Pibor County as well as other areas of concern, extending its humanitarian response beyond the usual lean season and increasing the number of vulnerable people who need support. In the past two months, WFP has extended its food assistance to nearly 80,000 people in Pibor County. Meanwhile, in Akobo East more than 40,000 people are currently receiving food assistance. WFP will continue to scale up its emergency food response working with partners to build community resilience and development. In total, WFP has provided food assistance to five million people in need in South Sudan in 2020. UNICEF will further scale up its interventions supporting therapeutic treatment and stabilization centres in the most affected counties to protect and save children’s lives. This year, UNICEF has already treated 170,000 children affected by severe acute malnutrition, with a 94 per cent recovery rate. Further expansion of services is now urgently needed - including to insecure areas - for the treatment of severe acute malnutrition. UNICEF will continue to address the underlying causes of malnutrition such as malaria and diarrheal diseases caused by a lack of clean water, sanitation and hygiene, and investing in prevention of malnutrition through promotion of breastfeeding and good feeding practices for the young child. FAO’s priority is to assist farming and agro-pastoral communities to increase their production and preserve their livelihoods. So far in 2020, over 100 000 farming families have received support to grow their own food from seeds, and more than 5 million animals have been vaccinated and treated to assist 164 000 households. FAO has also distributed 800 tonnes of emergency animal feed for critical animal stocks, especially in flood-affected locations.

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23 June 2022

This World Refugee Day, the right to seek safety is enduringly and urgently important

Twenty-five years ago, on the banks of the remote Bala Murghab River, I witnessed and supported a community of 8,000 Afghan Turcomen who sought and accessed safety from violence. Villages in northern Afghanistan were falling in rapid succession to a relentless Taleban surge, and the tightknit community of Marechak forded the river and ensured their safety. The Murghab River was not just a natural barrier, but an international boundary between Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. When the Marechaki families crossed it, they exercised their right to seek and enjoy asylum, and they triggered the international obligation of their new host state to not repulse them, and to grant them safety. If war is a failure of our international rules-based system, asylum is a small victory — a safety net which recognizes that innocents should have the means to escape horrors and to receive protection. Thus, the right to seek safety is a right that you exercise when your other rights are violated. It is realistic, rather than idealistic. It saves lives and it provides respite — every day, and for millions. Today, some 100 million people around the world are forcibly displaced by conflict and persecution. Twenty-seven million of them are refugees. They are the shards of our fractured international order. On this day of 20 June, the United Nations marks World Refugee Day, when we commemorate the strength and resilience of people forced to flee. We reaffirm that seeking asylum is a human right. Anyone fleeing persecution, conflict, or human rights abuses has a right to seek protection in another country. UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is restating five core principles that have saved these and countless other lives: the right to seek asylum; safe access; no pushbacks; no discrimination; and humane treatment. Granting asylum is not a favour. It’s an international obligation. But it’s more than that: it’s a human reflex. Throughout my career, I have seen countries, and more importantly, people, open their borders, their homes and indeed their hearts to strangers in danger. From the rainforests of Kisangani and Gueckedou, the mehmankhaneh of Mashhad and Peshawar, the mountains of Sabzak and Chouf, the beaches of Lesbos and Tripoli, and the downtowns of Bogota and Amman, I have witnessed trauma, succour and humanity. Compassion knows no boundaries. Yet, 100 million people forced from home is not normal. Safety nets are not solutions. The best intentions can run dry if there is no end in sight, and if support is limited and diminishing. So even as we honour the resilience of those forced to flee, and thank those who host them, we also intensify our efforts to strengthen international solidarity and to work with others to bring about peace and development. South Sudan, where I now work, manifests the tragedy of massive and prolonged displacement but also points towards a more decent and hopeful way ahead. Decades of war have pushed over 2 million South Sudanese out of the country, and conflict and climate crises have displaced another 2 million within its borders. Yet this new nation, despite poverty and instability, has itself opened its doors to 343,000 refugees and asylum seekers. Acting with generosity and alacrity, it has provided security and, where it can, donated large tracts of black cotton soil farmland. Working as a team, the international community in South Sudan is taking an approach that ensures that peace, humanitarian action and development are in sync, and pushes us in the direction of solutions. We are already seeing results. Last year, for example, we advocated for international support and succeeded in obtaining a US$98 million grant from the World Bank to support both hosts and refugees — a model gesture of support for a consistent asylum nation. And South Sudanese refugees themselves are beginning to return. Over half a million have repatriated since the signing of the revitalised peace agreement (RARCSS) in 2018. They are at the vanguard of peace and represent a logical conclusion to exile. For decades safely protected in Uganda, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo, they are tentatively but emphatically coming home. As an elderly man in Raja, northern South Sudan, said to me last year: we thank Sudan for giving us refuge, but this is home; this is the place where I walk the streets with my dignity intact. Working as a harmonised UN team, we are joining up the pieces, and building what we call ‘pockets of hope’ — places where we honour people’s decisions and follow their lead, in order to build development and peace. But for a person forced to flee, it begins with safety. Crossing a border, receiving protection and support, picking up the pieces. When a displaced person feels safe, she can recuperate; and her nation can have the space to rebuild and reconcile. Push that person back, you create insecurity but nurture that person until they choose to return voluntarily, and you have forged an agent of peace and stability. This World Refugee Day, let us recall that every day, millions of ordinary and unsung people are making sure that those in peril can find safety and refuge. And let us reaffirm our collective, global responsibility to uphold this principle, and to enable the refugee to heal, learn, work, thrive; and when the conditions that led to flight have lifted, to find a durable solution.

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17 June 2022

Education Transformation Summit Consultations Launched in South Sudan

In partnership with the United Nations Development System in South Sudan, the Ministry of General Education and Instruction launched the National Consultations in preparation for the Education Transformation Summit. Recognizing that education is a human right and a foundation for peace, tolerance, and sustainable development, the UN Secretary-General announced in his report to the UN General Assembly on ‘Our Common Agenda’ his intention to convene a Transforming Education Summit in September 2022. The Summit will mobilize action, ambition, solidarity, and solutions to transform education between now and 2030 “Education statistics from the Ministry of Education demonstrate that more boys are in school than girls. We need to look at ways of improving teaching, learning, and access for a friendly, safe, and equal environment for girls and boys,” said Ms. Sara Beysolow Nyanti, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations Development System in South Sudan. The Summit provides an opportunity to mobilize greater political ambition, commitment, and action to reverse the slide in quality education and accelerate progress towards targets under the Decade of Action and the 2030 Agenda. The Government of South Sudan will conduct national consultations for an inclusive, multi sectoral dialogues and meaningful stakeholders' engagement. This action supports the preparation of South Sudan’s National Statements of Commitments to inform the Secretary General’s summit in September 2022. The Consultations will help develop a shared vision, commitment, and alignment of action across stakeholders with a focus on innovative solutions, policy, planning, and budgetary changes needed to transform education for the people of South Sudan. “These consultations are unique in South Sudan, bringing together all education stakeholders, including pupils, secondary school students, lecturers, teachers, Ministry of Education officials, and the UN, among others, to discuss the improvement of education. This is a rare opportunity, and we must all commit to the course” said Hon. Minister Awut Deng Achuil, Minister of General Education and Instruction. The Consultations will focus on actions that can accelerate progress on education as part of the 2030 Agenda and transform education to be inclusive, equitable, safe, and healthy. The consultations will solicit National commitments to transform education and greater public engagement from all education stakeholders in South Sudan. “Education is a right that every child must enjoy, however, many are left out due to lack of financial resources and unfriendly learning environment. The government and stakeholders should put in place a conducive environment for all children, girls, and boys, to learn, lead, decide and thrive” stressed Madeline, a senior four student. The consultations will help to enhance greater momentum in advance of the September Summit and a shared understanding as to the key elements of transforming education to inform the SG’s Summit Summary and Call to Action

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08 June 2022

A Green and Clean Future Beckons for South Sudan

Over the past period, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has significantly increased its use of solar power across South Sudan. One example is the IOM managed solar plant that supplies electricity to the Humanitarian Hub in Malakal. The Hub, which has been listed as one of the twelve environmentally friendly practices in the global Compendium of Good Practices for a Greener Humanitarian Response published by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO), provides living and office space to over three hundred humanitarian workers. The generation of solar power reduces the carbon footprint of the Hub, but, beyond that, also points to the potential that solar power holds for the future of South Sudan. When an organization generates electricity through renewable energy – solar power being one of them – it generates “carbon credits”. These carbon credits can be traded on the international market for hard cash. In the case of the Humanitarian Hub in Malakal, IOM generated sufficient carbon credits to fund equipping the Malakal Teaching Hospital with a solar plant and compatible power bank. This, in turn, will enable the Hospital’s critical care units to function full-time, with a reliable and cost-effective green power system. The impact on the local population is clear: Malakal Teaching Hospital is the only hospital in the area, serving over 80,000 people in Malakal town and the surrounding counties. This project is clearly a success in and by itself. Indeed, it’s the first time globally that a UN Agency or an international NGO trades carbon credits on the international market. Something that would not have been possible without the collaboration between IOM and Energy Peace Partners (EPP). But it also points to where the future of South Sudan’s energy provision lies and, similarly, what a more widespread use of solar power could mean for the development of this young nation. Where it is available, electricity in South Sudan today mostly comes from diesel powered generators. As the IOM project shows, focusing much needed investment to increase the access to electricity on solar power and gradually phasing out diesel generated electricity would have multiple beneficial effects. Solar power is cheaper, cleaner and longer lasting. Diesel generators continuously require new diesel to burn and generators must be replaced every few years. A solar panel can reliable produce electricity for up to twenty-five years, with limited maintenance. It also reduces the negative environmental and public health impact of burning often bad quality diesel. Finally, scaling up the use of solar power in, for example, public buildings would also provide South Sudan with an additional source of income through selling carbon credits on the international market. South Sudan is blessed with on average eight hours of sunshine a day, with high solar power potential. The country has abundant available land, some of which could be used to establish solar farms. There is no question that dramatically increased access to electricity is one important condition for unlocking the economic potential this young nation has. The IOM experience shows that, to address this pressing need, the power of the sun may, in this regard, well be much more important than oil. Peace and security permitting, a cleaner and greener future really does beckon for South Sudan.

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Solar panels generating solar power in the IOM supported Humanitarian Hub in Malaka

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04 May 2022

South Sudan recommits to enhancing efforts to improve climate change-induced health threats including flooding

World Health Day is observed annually on 7 April, to commemorate the anniversary of the founding of the World Health Organization (WHO). This year’s event is marked under the theme “Our Planet, Our Health,” and is aimed to raise awareness of the inextricable link between the planet and our health, as the burden of non-communicable and infectious diseases rises alongside the growing incidence of climate-related challenges. Climate change is manifesting in increasing temperature, rising sea levels, changing rainfall patterns, and more frequent and severe extreme weather conditions such as flooding. The WHO estimates that more than 13 million annual deaths globally are due to avoidable environmental causes, including the climate crisis. “The recent flooding witnessed in many parts of the country and extreme weather are examples of the effect of climate change. These have facilitated mosquitos to spread malaria further and fast than ever before. Malaria thus, remains the leading cause of illness and death and morbidity in South Sudan”, said Dr Victoria Anib Majur, the Undersecretary at the Ministry of Health South Sudan in a press release issued on the World Health day event on7 April 2022. These new realities have inflicted profound health threats including diseases outbreaks that have caused needless illness and death. Since July 2020, South Sudan has been experiencing heavy rainfall and rising water levels along the White Nile, which resulted in massive flooding in many parts of the country affecting nearly one million people and subsequently resulting in widespread disruption to normal patterns of life in the affected locations. In 2022, The Ministry of Health with support from WHO and partners conducted two rounds of oral cholera vaccination in Rubkona and Bentiu Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp in Unity State protecting almost 200 000 people. “WHO will continue to do its utmost best in supporting the Ministry of Health to address these challenges,” said Dr Fabian Ndenzako, WHO Representative a.i. for South Sudan. Strengthening multi-stakeholder engagement and collaboration to ensure alignment of efforts to fight climate change should be placed high on the agenda”. With direct consequences for the key determinants of health, climate change is negatively impacting air and water quality, food security, and human habitat and shelter. Consequently, the burden of heart and lung disease, stroke, and cancer, among others, is growing in Africa and the world at large. Like many countries in the African Region, South Sudan also faces water and sanitation scarcity whether in health facilities or communities. Water-borne diseases such as hepatitis E virus and diarrheal diseases are on the rise, especially in most affected areas of Unity, Upper Nile, and Jonglei states. The Ministry of Health calls upon all stakeholders to act on the social and economic determinants of climate change and health, by working across sectors to improve living and working conditions, and access to education, particularly for the most marginalized groups, ensuring the continued delivery of essential healthcare services. The Ministry of Health also calls for joint action by legislators and policymakers to combat tobacco and its effects on the environment and human health.

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Guests assemble at the World Health day celebration ceremony

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11 April 2022

Breaking the Bias for a Sustainable Future

Gender bias refers to the prejudice toward one gender over the other. One important theme for this year’s International Women’s Day was “Breaking the Bias”, which envisions a gender equal world free of bias and discrimination. International Women’s Day is marked yearly on 8th of March to celebrate the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. This year, the celebrations did not only focus on breaking the gender bias but also on the importance that women play in sustainable development. In Juba, a half-day event brought together over 1000 participants. Government officials, development partners, donors, non-governmental organizations, uniformed forces, and civil society came together to celebrate South Sudanese women. In addition to engaging speeches, the agenda also included poetry recitals on women’s rights, handicrafts exhibitions, and awards to South Sudanese women-led organizations, inspirational women leaders and female media persons. All across South Sudan, the message for International Women’s Day was overwhelmingly clear: the gender bias needs to be broken. The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day implores us to challenge gender bias for equality. Around the world, women frequently face insidious violence that continues to prevent their full participation and equality. To remove these barriers for South Sudanese women, we must challenge the violence. In South Sudan, the national theme for International Women’s Day was “Gender equality for future sustainability: promote and celebrate women and girls’ achievements and resilience” which went hand-in-hand with UN Women’s global theme “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow”. Across South Sudan, women and allies came together to celebrate the immense accomplishments of women, reflect on how much work remains, and to make commitments to deepen and accelerate efforts to achieve gender equality. The effects of climate change are particularly visible in South Sudan. Floods in vast areas of the country have left many at risk of displacement and lack of access to basic services. Vulnerable populations, especially women and children, are hit particularly hard by rising waters. In many South Sudanese homes, women are at the heart of the household’s nexus of water, food, and energy – and thus often know firsthand about the challenges and potential solutions in these areas. Women are the most convincing advocates for the solutions they need, so they should be at the forefront of decision-making on sustainable development and climate change mitigation. The UN is committed to standing alongside the women of South Sudan, and to put their priorities and experiences at the center of its work.

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Press Release

21 March 2022

Communiqué issued jointly by H.E. Josephine Lagu, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security of the Republic of South Sudan, and by Ms. Sara Beysolow Nyanti, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in South Sudan following the conclusion

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) is a rigorous multi-partner process for food security and nutrition analysis and is a key element in decision-making for Government and other stakeholders. The IPC results are used by Government, United Nations Agencies, Non-Governmental Organisations, civil society and other relevant actors, as the best representation of the severity and magnitude of acute and chronic food insecurity, and acute malnutrition situations in the country. South Sudan has a long history with the IPC process, beginning during the preparations for Independence. Since 2007, South Sudan has been one of the early adopters, first as part of Sudan, then as an independent country, and has contributed significantly to the evolution of the IPC since its inception. The government of the Republic of South Sudan has long recognised the value the IPC can bring, utilising the insights, analyses and outputs to develop and coordinate evidence-based interventions to address hunger and malnutrition in the country. The 2022 IPC builds on the successes of previous years, drawing on expertise from the full range of actors engaged in food security in South Sudan. At the core of the IPC analysis is the two-week workshop, in which the Technical Working Group convened analysts from relevant agencies and sectors to examine the convergence of evidence following the IPC protocols and agree on classification and estimations of the population for the different categories. We note with satisfaction the success of this process in generating a shared understanding of the situation in South Sudan, based on open, transparent, inclusive and scientifically rigorous discussion between the technical experts. We are confident that this process will facilitate fruitful collaboration in pursuit of our common goal of protecting and improving lives and livelihoods of the population of South Sudan.

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Press Release

30 November 2021

The UN Country Management Team in South Sudan presents draft findings from UN Common Country Analysis and Independent Evaluation from 2019-2022 United Nations Cooperation Framework

The UNCT held a multi-stakeholder workshop on 25 November to present the findings from CCA and the independent evaluation of the 2019-2022 United Nations Cooperation Framework (UNCF). The workshop was attended by 130 key stakeholders including the Government, Development Partners, Civil Society, NGOs, Private Sector, Media, and UN Agencies, and UNMISS. The conclusions from the workshop will inform the formulation of the next UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) for the period 2023 - 2025, which will replace the current UNCF due to end in December 2022. The new UNSDCF will be anchored to the South Sudan Revised National Development Strategy (R-NDS), and 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The CCA provides a snapshot of the country’s context and dynamics of development in the country to inform the programmatic. The CCA identifies current development issues and challenges and their underlying causes. The workshop enabled stakeholders to validate the key challenges and issues identified in the CCA, as well as the findings and recommendations from the 22019-2022 UNCF evaluation. In his opening remarks Mr Meshack Malo RC/HC ai remarked: “Findings from the independent evaluation of the UNCF and CCA, along with the emerging findings of the National Development Strategy and the 2030 agenda will inform the priorities of the next UN Sustainable Cooperation Framework for the period of January 2023 to December 2025” “Achieving sustainable development in South Sudan is not about our individual entities, but what we can do together for the people of South Sudan. The Framework will profoundly guide our working between 2023-2025” stressed Meshack. The next step after the CCA/UNCF evaluation workshop will be the UNCT Visioning workshop on 30 November 2021. The outcome of the workshop will be the definition of the impact level change that the UN wishes to see and is able to contribute to in South Sudan by 2030. This will be followed by the Strategic Prioritization Workshop on 7-9 December 2021, where the same participants/stakeholders of the validation workshop will be invited to deliberate and agree on broad priority areas for the 2023-2025 UNSDCF.

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Press Release

01 November 2021

Additional investment in flood mitigation needed to avert climate disaster in South Sudan

(Juba, 29 October 2021) As flooding continues to impact people throughout South Sudan, the humanitarian community is working with the Government of South Sudan to support the hundreds of thousands of people affected. Close to 800,000 people have been affected to date by rising waters across the country since May, in particular in Jonglei, Unity, and Upper Nile states. On 28 October, a high-level visit to Bor County, Jonglei State brought together a diverse group ranging from the United Nations (UN) peace, development and humanitarian pillars, Government of South Sudan represented by the Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC) and the Office of H.E. Vice President Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, Embassy of Turkey as well as the University of Juba, to see firsthand the impact of the flooding. “Through this visit, we heard the voices of the people, the government and teams responding to the flooding in Jonglei State,” Arafat Jamal, the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator ad interim in South Sudan, said. “We witnessed the devastating effects of flooding but also saw hopeful efforts in terms of flood mitigation which has saved countless lives.” Affected communities spoke of entire villages uprooted as water inundated homes and farmlands, as well as a dramatic reduction in their access to essential health services, especially for expectant mothers. Concerns regarding the disruption to education were also raised, with parents increasingly worried about the impact of displacement on their children. “Through the distribution of food assistance, shelter items, lives have been saved – but it’s not enough. The UN humanitarian response is just 64 percent funded,” noted Jamal. The Resident Coordinator also pledged the continued support of the humanitarian community to the people of South Sudan and called for more intensive efforts to help communities adapt to changing weather patterns which has affected food security and sparked conflict as people seek safety on higher ground. “We are looking at what we can do better, including to reorientate our assistance to development initiatives such as investment in dykes, canals, extraction pumps, and intensive dialogues with communities to ensure peaceful coexistence.” On the ground in Jonglei, the visiting delegation met with communities who have already established a system for disaster management, and also witnessed the government taking responsibility. “At the national level, the Government has committed an unprecedented US $10million to support flood relief efforts, which will be implemented in partnership with the international community,” noted Jamal. Climate adaptation projects also sent a positive signal, with early works on a 180km dyke, which is five meters high and 20 meters wide, now underway. The dyke will stretch from Bor to Malakal and will protect a huge swathe of territory including livestock, farmlands and all communities along the way. Calling for the international community to build on the Government’s efforts to avert a climate catastrophe, Jamal underscored the UN’s commitment to save lives in the immediate term but also to look ahead. “Our desire to work together with the people of South Sudan and to help this country which is on the frontline of the global climate crisis. We are here to support communities as they deal with the increasingly frequent flood and drought events.”

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Press Release

20 August 2021

On World Humanitarian Day, South Sudan’s Humanitarian Country Team warns of a climate emergency and calls for an end to violence against aid workers in South Sudan

(Juba, 19 August 2021) Every year on World Humanitarian Day (WHD), we commemorate humanitarian workers who work tirelessly to reach millions of crisis-affected people with assistance and protection. Humanitarians work on the frontlines of crises, getting aid and protection to those in need. Today, those front-lines include not only battlefields, but the flood plains and the scorched landscapes of the global climate emergency, whose effects are painfully apparent in South Sudan. Climate change fuels conflict over shrinking resources and puts humanitarians in harm’s way. South Sudan’s Humanitarian Country Team calls for determined and collective climate action, and a firm end to violence against civilians and aid workers. “South Sudan is ranked among the five countries in the world most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and populations across the country are already suffering the impacts with devastating consequences, including disaster displacement,” said Arafat Jamal, the Humanitarian Coordinator ad interim for South Sudan. “Vulnerable populations are on the frontlines of the climate emergency, and are being battered by cycles of disasters, further eroding their ability to recover and rebuild their lives.” South Sudan regularly experiences torrential rains, seasonal flooding and locust infestation in parts of the country – and it is its most vulnerable people who suffer the effects in life changing ways. Last year, more than a million people were impacted by a second consecutive year of major flooding, with women and children most affected. This year the effects continue to be felt, with a worsening food security situation and some communities are now facing catastrophic needs. The levels of food insecurity and malnutrition are at the highest since independence ten years ago. “Flooding is not a new phenomenon in South Sudan, described biblically as the ‘nation whose land the rivers have spoiled’, Jamal observed. What is new is the intensity and frequency of inundation, colliding with conflict fueled migration patterns that have led communities to seek safety from violence on riverbanks, leaving them exposed to rising waters. “Two weeks ago I visited Ayod County, I spoke to flood-affected communities who told me that the waters from last years disaster had yet to fully recede before new flooding took place. With their fields waterlogged and their livestock marooned on small islands, they collapse into a state of humanitarian need, where the basics of survival food, health, clean drinking water — must be provided.” And yet, while the climate emergency becomes more acute in South Sudan, including an intensification and frequency of extreme weather, the very people responding with life-saving assistance are facing increasingly dangerous conditions. Every day, aid workers, most of whom are South Sudanese, find themselves in the crosshairs of violent action, and every day, they are risking their lives to provide assistance to the most vulnerable people in need in South Sudan. Since March 2021, there has been a rise in the number of attacks against aid worker who serve the community. Ambushes and attacks on clearly marked humanitarian convoys including ambulances also increased. Four aid workers were killed carrying out their duties this year. Their deaths bring the number of aid workers killed in South Sudan since 2013 when conflict broke out to 128. Most were South Sudanese. “Today we pause to remember all humanitarian and aid workers whose lives were taken from them in the course of their humanitarian work,” Jamal said. “We also salute the courage of humanitarian workers serving in isolated and insecure locations, doing crucial and lifesaving work.” When aid workers are endangered or under attack, vulnerable people who need food, health services, access to clean water, nutrition and education services, are deprived of the much needed help. “The trend of increased violence against humanitarian workers, civilians and assets cannot continue, and is a violation of international humanitarian law. Humanitarian workers must be able to safely reach people in remote and highly food-insecure areas and those in conflict- or flood-affected areas without the threat of attack,” added Jamal. “Time is already running out for millions of the most vulnerable people here – those who have contributed least to the climate emergency but are hit the hardest,” concluded the Humanitarian Coordinator ad interim in South Sudan. “World Humanitarian Day is an opportunity for all to re-commit to the values that underpin humanitarianism.”

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Press Release

06 August 2021

Thousands of people suffering the impact of flooding

On 4 August, a mission comprising of humanitarian representatives and government officials from Juba and Bor visited Ayod and Canal counties to understand the impacts of the ongoing flooding and support required to assist the people. During the mission, local authorities reported that upwards of 70,000 people have been affected by flooding in Ayod and Canal counties. For many, this is the second time they have faced flooding since May. “Intense and unrelenting for two years, the flooding is seriously degrading the ability of the people to cope and survive. Tens of thousands of people have been impacted,” Arafat Jamal, the Humanitarian Coordinator ad interim in South Sudan, said. “What is occurring in Ayod is a distressing example of how a changing climate disrupts the normal patterns and intensifies the effects of flooding, leaving people disoriented and dispossessed. The people we met in Ayod and Canal faced acute humanitarian needs, yet their thoughts were directed to their brethren across the river, marooned on islands surrounded by water, sheltering under trees and unable to cross to safety,” the Humanitarian Coordinator added “I met with community leaders and women representatives, who told me that people have been arriving in search of safety daily as waters rise. This has placed increased pressure on their already meagre resources with communities surviving on fish and indigestible grasses. Urgent food assistance, shelter, kitchen items, medicines and access to clean water are especially needed,” Mr. Jamal stated. Mr. Jamal pledged the support of the humanitarian community in favour of the flood affected people. A joint humanitarian team is in the process of providing for the basic needs of flood survivors in Ayod and beyond. ‘The imperative right now is to alleviate suffering, which we shall do with the resources at our disposal. But we must also help communities to adapt to change, and we are also investing in longer term interventions, such as dyke building, that will help communities to better withstand recurring climate shocks.’ The Humanitarian Coordinator noted that the situation witnessed in Ayod is just one example of the multiple reports received from across the country of people impacted by flooding thus far in 2021. Mr. Jamal pledged humanitarian support and called for increased investment in flood mitigation measures.

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