PROJECTED FOOD ASSISTANCE NEEDS FOR FEBRUARY 2019
Situation
In July, hostilities between armed groups and inter-communal fighting persisted in most of the country. In Western Bahr el Ghazal, fighting was reported between armed groups in Mboro and Bisellia in Wau County. Several IDPs from Wadhalele have arrived in Wau town. Civilians in Nagero were also displaced to Tambura town and Bazia in Western Bahr el Ghazal due to insecurity and conflict. In Central Equatoria an estimated number of 15,000 IDPs were reportedly displaced by conflict in Tore, Yei County. Thirty-seven civilians were abducted in Minyori Payam, Yei County.
OVERVIEW
Eighty incidents were reported in July, with most occurring in Unity and Upper Nile (41 per cent). Violence affecting humanitarian personnel and assets continued to represent the majority of incidents (60 per cent).
HIGHLIGHTS
UNSC extends UNAMID mandate through June 2019
Relief actors scale up flood preparedness activities for the ongoing rainy season
High staple food prices projected to persist across Sudan through 2019
KEY DEVELOPMENTS
Samuel Okiror
After months of negotiations aimed at ending a civil war that has killed tens of thousands of people and forced some 4.5 million from their homes since December 2013, South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar signed new power-sharing and ceasefire agreements on 5 August.
Read the full report on IRIN.
Further flooding expected across East Africa throughout 2018
Well above-average March to May 2018 Gu/long rains caused significant flooding over the Eastern Horn of Africa and has been followed by heavy rainfall at the start of the June to September main rainy season in the northern part of the region (Figure 1).
OVERVIEW
This Weekly Bulletin focuses on selected acute public health emergencies occurring in the WHO African Region. The WHO Health Emergencies Programme is currently monitoring 59 events in the region. This week’s edition covers key ongoing events, including:
Ebola virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Cholera in Cameroon
Cholera in Tanzania
Humanitarian crisis in Central African Republic
Humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia.
During the month of July 2018, 9,154 persons from South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Burundi and other countries, arrived in Uganda—the majority from DRC. The humanitarian situation remains unpredictable in South Sudan, DRC and Burundi.
Refugees from South Sudan report fleeing primarily out of fear of being killed by fighters from either side of the conflict inside the country, while those from DRC report interethnic clashes and fears related to the upcoming elections.
South Sudan again topped the list of most violent countries in the world in which to deliver aid in 2017, in a report launched by Humanitarian Outcomes. today.
"It's the third consecutive year that South Sudan tops the global list, underscoring the complexities in delivering aid in this war, and the impunity with which armed actors operate when attacking aid workers," said Jan Egeland, Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).
Highlights
- Currency Exchange Rate: Following years of continued depreciation until June 2018, the South Sudanese Pound (SSP) currency has appreciated significantly on the parallel market. In July, the average exchange rate in the Juba parallel market was SSP 230 for one US Dollar, compared to SSP 310 one month ago. However, the July exchange rate of the SSP per US Dollar was still 46 percent higher than that in the same month one year ago.
6,800+ Refugees and IDPs received nonfood items and seeds during the reporting period.
9,900+ Tree seedlings raised in Upper Nile during the reporting period
1,400+ Refugees and IDPs received livelihood support across South Sudan during the reporting period
KEY FIGURES
INSIDE SOUTH SUDAN
298,038 Refugees in South Sudan as of 31 July 2018.
1.88 million IDPs in South Sudan including 198,444 in UNMISS Protection of Civilians sites as of 26 July 2018.
Overview
Background
Key Messages
Protracted conflict drives food insecurity; and flooding in the north affects livelihoods
HIGHLIGHTS
• Currency Exchange Rate: Driven by foreign exchange shortages, the South Sudanese Pound (SSP) continued its depreciation in May. In Juba, the average exchange rate of one US Dollar was 305 SSP in the parallel market, while the official exchange rate was SSP 138, compared to 274 SSP and 136 SSP in the previous month. Given the low value of the local currency, the Central Bank of South Sudan introduced new 500 SSP bill in June.
SITUATION
After more than four years of civil conflict, South Sudan remains one of the most food-insecure countries in the world. The IPC Technical Working Group reported that 5.3 million people required food assistance in January, an increase of 40 percent from the same time last year. Food security deteriorated through July 2018, as widespread conflict continued to displace communities, disrupt livelihood activities and impede humanitarian access to vulnerable populations.
HIGHLIGHTS
UN records at least 10 aid worker deaths between January and June
April–May clashes result in more than 230 civilian deaths in Unity
Violence prompts relief actors to restrict operations in Maban
KEY DEVELOPMENTS
Sectarian terrorist attacks increase in Afghanistan
On Friday, 3 August, a gun and bomb attack on a Shia mosque in the city of Gardez left at least 39 people dead, including a number of children. The Gardez mosque attack is the latest in a growing number of terrorist attacks by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant-Khorasan (ISIL-K) against civilians and civilian infrastructure across Afghanistan. Recent targets have included a medical center for midwives, a government refugee assistance office, and a delegation of Sikh and Hindu community leaders.
