Access Issues
Air Operations
During the reporting period, WFP delivered 601 MT of mixed commodities by air from northern sector locations, an increase of 200% over the previous week. The increase was due to the resumption of normal WFP air deliveries, particularly commercial airlifts.
Food was airdropped in Ajiep (126 MT), Aweil (162 MT), Banya (18 MT), Kuleny (2 MT) and Panthou (72 MT). A new aircraft that has been leased by WFP to deliver food to Wau airlifted 71 MT during the week. Commercial air freights from Khartoum to Juba continued over the reporting period delivering 111 MT of food for distribution in the area.
During the week 26 December 1999 to 2 January 2000, three C-130 Hercules and one Buffalo aircraft continued to deliver food aid from Lokichokio, and one C-130 Hercules operated out of El Obeid. No food aid deliveries were made from Lokichokio from 30 December until 3 January because of potential problems linked to Y2K compliance. No deliveries were made to southern sector locations from Khartoum during the reporting period.
The OLS Air Operations Safety Committee met in Lokichokio on 6 December 1999 and confirmed approval from the Kenyan Directorate of Civil Aviation to go ahead with night landing practice upon request to the Lokichokio Air Traffic Controllers.
Barge Operations
Barge operations were to resume during this month with the Juba 14 convoy, however, security clearance has not been fully obtained and the barges are not expected to depart before some time in the New Year.
Road Operations
During the reporting period, food continued to be delivered from Kosti through El Obeid and Bentiu for prepositioning in Rubkona. WFP also delivered 176 MT of cereals from Kosti to Um Ruwaba for distribution by SCF-US.
SECURITY
Security Awareness Training workshops for WFP staff began this week. The workshops are intended to improve security and safety awareness of all WFP staff in Sudan and are expected to continue well into the New Year. Training recipients will receive documents certifying their attendance and participation in the workshops.
WFP security trainers arrived Khartoum to train Sudan staff on security issues. The workshops informed staff on the UN security management system, office and residence security, fire safety, detention situations, stress in emergency, driving safety, abuse of power, first aid and emergency preparedness and survival mechanisms. All staff are to be targeted. The workshops are expected to continue throughout the next reporting period.
The security situation is calm in Upper Nile. The WFP security Officer arrived in Malakal during the week. He will be conducting a security assessment along the Malakal Fanjak - Tonga corridor. Lankien, Waat, Tangyang, Pieri, Kaikuny, and Motot declared security level four during the reporting period.
The escalating insecurity and fighting is causing massive displacement of populations who are moving into Bahr Al Ghazal or further away from airstrips roads. Reports recently received indicate that about 10,000 IDPs arrived in Toch Payam in Gogrial County while an unknown number have moved to Wanding.
The situation of those trapped by the fighting in Upper Nile according to the IDPs is grave. However OLS agencies have mostly been unable to reach these populations due to flight denials to these locations, insecurity, inaccessibility (populations have moved away from airstrips) and more so, because the whereabouts of some of the populations are unknown.
OLS emergency response teams are standing by with emergency kits awaiting flight clearance and for the security situation to improve
On 21 December 1999, Mayen Jur was cleared for OLS agencies to resume operations.
During the reporting period, RASS gave permission for OLS to travel to Longochok to recover the UN water compressor.
On 23 December 1999, OLS security visited Longochok and found the airstrip overgrown and unsuitable for landing. Plans to recover the UN water compressor was postponed. Fighting in the location had stopped and the area was declared security level two.
During the reporting period, OLS security visited Kankien and Waat. Waat remains Red No-Go.
During the reporting period, OLS security accompanied a food convoy to New Cush and surrounding areas which have been closed to OLS operations since April. The convoy reached Lokutei and other locations and has completed the mission.
On 26 December 1999 Natinga was cleared for return of OLS operations. However the Natinga to New Cush road remains Red No-Go.
On 27 December 1999, OLS security visited the Western Upper Nile region on 28 December and met with Commander Tito Biel and Peter Gadet. The two commanders confirmed that fighting continues West of Bentiu around Mayom. Koch and Bow are calm and the population has returned and are re-building tukuls. As a result, both sites are cleared for longer than 1-day interventions but remain at security level three.
Reports received on 28 December 1999 indicate that commander Biel and Gadet are prepared to let the barges go unharmed through areas they control. However there remains some concern about stability on the eastern side of the River Nile. OLS Security will try to arrange for appropriate meetings in that area to secure agreement to let the barges through.
On 28 December 1999, Motot, Kaikuny, Pieri and Walgak were declared red-no-go for OLS operations due to the risk of fighting spreading from the area of Waat.
On 29 December 1999, Kajo Keji was bombed. No casualties or damage reported.
On 30 December 1999, OLS security visited Lankien and reported continued instability in the area associated with the activities and presence of Commander Simon Gatwitch. No OLS staff allowed into the area without prior permission from security.
On 2 January 2000, Lankien is now placed at security level four. Red No-Go sites in the region now include: Lankien, Waat, Tangyang, Pieri, Kaikuny, and Motot,
DELIVERIES, DISTRIBUTIONS & INTERVENTIONS
Food Distribution
During the reporting period, Mixed food commodities amounting to 216 MT were distributed to 18,701 beneficiaries in Aweil town. The beneficiaries comprised 16,815 IDPs and local residents and were made up of 9,248 women and 7,567 men. Food was also provided to 36 TB inpatients and 555 girls and 1,295 boys through emergency school feeding programmes.
Food amounting to 131 MT was distributed to beneficiaries in Juba and surrounding areas during the week. The distribution comprised 123 MT to 14,888 IDPs in camps, 40 MT to 4,978 vulnerables, as well as 2 MT to 47 TB patients in the hospital and 80 refugees. Distributions were carried out by partner NGOs including OXFAM, Sudan Aid, SCC, ECS, IARA and GLRA.
A team has left WFP Malakal for Pibor. The team will receive the scheduled airdrop and prepare for distributions during the next reporting period.
During a meeting that took place between HAC, WFP, and its partner NGOs, WFP announced that food distributions would end in December and recommence in April next year as recommended in the OLS report.
While monitoring distributions, WFP staff noted that distribution centers serving large numbers of beneficiaries were problematic. They noted that ration cards were at times not used and that local relief committees sometimes received little supervision and were found to be customizing the beneficiary list and including non-registered individuals in WFP distributions. WFP have decided to utilize the Letters of Agreement signed with the NGOs to ensure use of appropriate food distribution procedures and penalize breaches during the next IDP distribution schedule, beginning in April 2000.
During the reporting period covering 19 December to 2 January, a total of 209, 275 targeted beneficiaries received WFP food aid in seventeen locations across the Southern Sector of OLS.
Despite the New Cush to Chukudum road remaining a "no-go" area for longer-term interventions due to insecurity, WFP and CRS conducted rapid, food aid interventions in Kapoeta County, Eastern Equatoria. During the reporting period, WFP delivered a total of 125 MT of food aid to Kiklai, New Cush and Latukei in Kapoeta County as well as Lorema in Torit County in the same region. This rapid intervention was carried out after WFP and CRS received reports of a worsening food security situation in the area following drought and continued insecurity preventing cultivation and access by aid agencies. Through these distributions, over 45,000 food insecure Didinga internally displaced persons (IDPs) and local Dinka inhabitants were reached.
During the reporting period, a total of 191075 beneficiaries received WFP food aid across the Southern Sector of OLS in thirteen locations in Bahr Al Ghazal (Mangar Angui, Wuncum, Peth, Tieraliet, Ajakuac, Ajiep, Malualwut, Liethnom, Banya, Baau, Ajak, Aganyi, Mapordit), and in two locations in Upper Nile (Padak, Leech State), and in one location in Equatoria (Kalokupe).
During the reporting period, UNICEF distributed 814 bags of UNIMIX to 2427 children below the age of five years in ten supplementary feeding centers and around Juba town and 34 cartons of washing soap to 318 lactating mothers.
During the reporting period, UNICEF issued 166 kgs of essential drugs to Jakmier center, Doleib center in Sobat corridor as well as 150 kg of essential drugs to the pediatric hospital, Nagdiar and Sobat corridor as a continuation supply to health facilities.
UNICEF issued 2.55 MT of UNIMIX to Nagdiar and Adong feeding centers in Sobat corridor.
Emergency Response
During the reporting period, A food gap reported by local media in Darfur State was found to have affected south Darfur because of pest attack on crops, delayed rainfalls and poor crop management techniques. These were found to be in line with observations made in the 1999 OLS assessment report. A proposal has been submitted for the initiation of an emergency school feeding programme in the Khor Omar IDP camp. The programme will cater for 230 primary school children, 70 % of whom will be IDPs.
During the reporting period, UNICEF advanced the GOS an amount of Ls 8,000,000 for construction of two classrooms in Khor Omer camp for 263 students.
Nutrition & Household Food Security
During the reporting period, UNICEF participated on a one-day workshop on high-energy milk consistence for State Ministry of Health (SMOH) staff (Nutrition Supervisors) in Juba Teaching Hospital.
Livestock Project
During the reporting period, UNICEF inoculated 2498 h/cattle against Rinder pest in Lafone.
Health Training
UNICEF participated in the Monitoring and evaluation Training Workshop of 20 participants from government counterparts and NGOs that ended on 28 December 1999 in Malakal.
UNICEF EPI Malakal teams started the acceleration programme first round in Adong, Bailet, Gelachei, and Dini along the Sobat corridor. The teams for the second round acceleration in Owachi, Adhidyang, Obaydhek, Panydway, Awau, Thworo, and Dur West in Khor El Haram corridor have also started the process.
UNICEF team of EPI has returned from Nasir after they have conducted second acceleration and various immunizations. The EPI team in Malakal for the acceleration rounds visited the areas of Wau, Shilluk West, Agoid West, Canal, Doleib Hill, New Fangak, Pathowar, Pameth, and Nagdiar.
Water & Sanitation
During the reporting period, UNICEF WES team conducted refresher training of three VHCs in Obel 2.
UNICEF WES section Khartoum and NRWC team visited Malakal. The team met with the State Ministry of Engineering Affairs and two members of state assembly to assess the status of implementation and schedule of completion of water plan.
UNICEF team of WES (KAP) has returned from Renk and Nasir after they have conducted KAP training.
Awareness and Public Education
During the reporting period, three meetings were held to monitor the status of meningitis cases in Wau. Treatment protocols including case definition have been prepared and agreed upon by the health and nutrition sub-committee. On 27 December 1999 a task force team, which includes Minister of Health, MSF-Holland, IRC and UNICEF was formed.
As an emergency preparedness the task force team prepared a plan for a meningitis campaign. The target beneficiaries for the vaccination campaign are those between two years and thirty years of age and this constitutes about 215,600 (70%) of the total population. Vaccination sites planned are eastern Bank Camp, Marial Ajith, Baryar, Momoi, HTI, Nazareth, Wau Hospital. Wau Main Market, Jor Market, Military Hospital, Sicka Hadid, Mukhtah Center, Jeel Kheir, Griniti, Hai Jadied, Culutre center, St. Michael Scholl (Lokloko), Kosti Church, Jou Schools (Hai Jou), St. Raphael School and St. Joseph School.
INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS
During the reporting period, Preparations are ongoing in Bentiu for registration of IDPs in the New Year. Registration materials such as forms and ration cards are being sent to the area. Training of field staff in registration techniques is to begin next week.
OTHER OLS ISSUES
Meetings
The NGO/UNHCU Weekly Security Meetings were held on 20 and 27 December 1999 and 3 January 2000 at the UNHCU.
The RCG Meeting for South Darfur was held on 27 December 1999 at SCF-UK.
Bentiu Incident
At the end of the reporting period, it was learned that a serious security incident had occurred along the Bentiu/Mayom Road in Unity State on 2 January 2000 which, it has been subsequently learned, involved the death of two CARE national personnel and the abduction of two others by persons unknown. The incident is under investigation.
Inputs from WFP northern sector for the period 29 December 1999 - 5 January 2000 will be included in the next weekly update.