Food insecurity in Darfur, Sudan is due to persistent civil insecurity exacerbated by a poor harvest 2009/2010 and an escalation of fighting since the start of 2010.Shaddad IDP Camp, Darfur, shelters 45,000 © Demotix/Reporters
Oxfam urges long term commitment to Sudan
Olivia Kallis, a Nairobi-based representative of the Non Governmental Organisation Oxfam, has alerted the international community to the long-term humanitarian and developmental needs of all parts of Sudan.
Oxfam United Kingdom was one of 13 NGOs which was requested to leave Sudan’s territory in March 2009 by the Sudanese government. Referenda on Abyei and the self-determination of Southern Sudan are expected to go ahead in January 2011.
The 9 January 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the Government of the Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement was seen as the basis of a solid and long-lasting peace and led to the formation of a hybrid African Union/United Nations peacekeeping operation in Darfur.
On a recent visit to Brussels, Olivia Kallis said that a huge development challenge lies ahead in both Darfur and the South. In South Sudan, there is very little development outside Juba, she said. The region only has 50 km of tarmac roads and there is 80 per cent illiteracy. The construction of both schools and hospitals is urgent.
In addition, the Darfur crisis is still not resolved. “This year alone, 200,000 people have had to flee their homes,” said Olivia Kallis. She welcomed the recent appointment of the EU’s Special Representative to Sudan, Rosalind Marsden, made by the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Baroness Ashton.
A former British Ambassador to Sudan, Brussels-based Rosalind Marsden took up her post on 1 September 2010. Her mandate is expected to last until 31 August 2011.
It involves, “working with the Sudanese parties, the AU and the United Nations (UN) and other national, regional and international stakeholders to achieve a peaceful transition under the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), including the organisation of credible referenda on Abyei and on self-determination of South Sudan in January 2011,” according to the European Council’s decision (2010/450/CFSP). Her mandate also includes, “post-referendum arrangements such as support for institution building and fostering stability, security and development of South Sudan irrespective of the outcome of the referendum on self determination” as well as “improving security and facilitating a political solution to the conflict in Darfur.”