IOM has provided transportation assistance to more than 8,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) who were successfully relocated from Abu Shouk camp in north Darfur, to Al Salaam, a new camp located a few kilometres away.
This operation was carried out in response to a request from the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and follows assessments carried out by IOM's Verification and Monitoring Units (VMUs) which were set up to ensure IDP movements in north and south Darfur are both voluntary and appropriate.
Al Salaam was set up to accommodate recently arrived IDPs who did not have access to essential basic services in Abu Shouk. The influx of new IDPs there meant there were concerns about the capacity to provide basic services in the existing location.
Over the past two weeks, IOM has assisted 8,156 vulnerable IDPs to relocate from Abu Shouk to Al Salaam. IOM provided 10 trucks and buses, 12 escorts and medical assistance for the operation.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) had already relocated about 13,000 individuals (3,350 families) to the new camp since the operation began on 29 June 2005.
Besides providing transportation assistance, IOM is also responsible for ensuring newly arrived IDPs are registered on the IDP database for Abu Shouk camp.
For more information, please call Abigail Montani, IOM Khartoum, Tel +249 193 570 801 to 804, Email amontani@iom.int <mailto:amontani@iom.int>