Sudan

Year-end Overview

Plan Overview

Working environment

 
Trends in 2017 suggest that the level of armed confrontation in Darfur continues to subside, particularly in the relatively stable West Darfur and some parts of North Darfur where there has been a steady trend of IDP returns over the past two years. With slow but positive trends, it is expected that conditions would be conducive for the resolution of the IDP situation in significant parts of Darfur. However, returning communities continuously suffer from a difficult access to basic services, lack of infrastructure, shortage of economically and environmentally viable livelihoods, as well as distress related to personal and land tenure insecurity.
 
Despite positive developments, the recovery from decades of conflict will be challenging. The easing of economic sanctions in 2017 could start to propel marginal, but noticeable, economic improvements for both refugees and host communities.
 
Sudan continues to be a source, transit and destination country for irregular mixed movements, including asylum-seekers and refugees using the East African North-bound migratory route through Libya to Europe. Trafficking, kidnapping and smuggling of people, remain major protection concerns. The eastern part of the country is expected to remain the entry point for primarily Eritrean migrants and refugees who mostly continue to transit through Khartoum before making their onwards journey to Europe.
 
The situation in the Syrian Arab Republic and Yemen is expected to remain fluid, hence significant number of new arrivals is expected to continue arriving to Sudan and settling in the capital as well. South Sudan conflict is unlikely to end and declaration of famine in parts of the country and increasing violence are likely to continue to cause external displacement with significant numbers of South Sudanese refugees crossing into Sudan.
 
The now relaxed requirement of Travel Permits allows more effective humanitarian access. It is anticipated that the Government would engage both humanitarian, developmental actors and the human rights monitoring mechanisms.
 
While the primary responsibility to protect refugees rests with the Government of Sudan, UNHCR provides support to the Government’s Commission for Refugees to coordinate the refugee response in Sudan. The Refugee Consultation Forum that was established in 2016 will continue to be the main, high-level coordination forum for all refugee situations within Sudan, whether undertaken in camp, rural or urban settings, or for new or protracted operations. UNHCR will continue to lead the Protection Cluster Working Group, share information and coordinate protection response activities. UNHCR, as the Emergency Shelter/NFI sector lead, will continue to coordinate the activities of over 35 NGO partners ensuring that there are no overlaps or gaps in activities.
 

Key priorities

 
Access to territory for Eritrean and South Sudanese refugees will continue to be ensured. To combat trafficking, UNHCR will work with partners under the existing strategy, and ensure that the National Committee to Combat Trafficking is functional. UNHCR will monitor detention facilities and intervene to prevent forcible returns and conduct advocacy on statelessness, including training and capacity-building on international refugee law. Support will be provided to law enforcement agencies to deal with traffickers. Child protection activities will continue with an emphasis on family reunification and responsible foster care arrangements, coupled with appropriate follow-up.
 
In East Darfur, West and South Kordofan, and White Nile State, additional support will be provided to law enforcement officials and communities to ensure protection from violence due to the ethnic divisions of the refugee populations. In the East, country-wide, community outreach, sexual and gender-based violence prevention and response, and sensitization of local authorities will be pursued. In the camps for South Sudanese refugees, the civilian nature of the institution of asylum will be underlined and intensive training and advocacy will be a priority.
 
Providing alternatives to onward movements will be used to reduce vulnerabilities associated with clandestine departures from camps, especially in the East, where people of concern are more likely to move onward. They will be sensitized to the dangers of onward movement, using the UNHCR-facilitated ‘Telling the Real Story’ project. Donor support will be mobilized for tertiary education, as the youth are inclined to move on in search of better education prospects.
 
Support will be given to host communities to promote peaceful co-existence, and those communities will have access to services that are uniquely available in camps.
 
The Alternatives to Camps and Urban Refugees policies will be promoted in order to achieve social cohesion with host communities, and smooth integration will be consolidated.
 
In 2018, UNHCR will continue to address statelessness by supporting access to legal aid and procedures for confirming nationality and documentation for South Sudanese at risk of statelessness. Birth registration and documentation will also be a priority.
 
UNHCR will continue to lead the protection sector with a priority given to capacity building for humanitarian partners, including governmental institutions, and advocacy for durable solutions.