Despite end of rebellion in Darfur, people are still on the run
Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - Although clashes between rebels and the Sudanese government have largely subsided in Darfur and many other areas of southwestern and southeastern Sudan, thanks to advent of a civilian–military government in Khartoum that accommodated rebel movements, there are still some intermittent clashes.
Years of civil war and orchestrated propaganda based on tribal grounds seem to be deeply rooted in the communities there and could be difficult to uproot, at least in the short run.
The analogy was based on Arab versus Africans, red (light skin) versus blues (dark skin); nomad versus settlers; and indigenous versus new arrivals are still lurking and ready to flare up any moment.
With fire arms still abundant in the hands of local individuals, any community clash results in serious causalities and displacement of civilians. Social media are quick to pick these up and the consequences are chaos and want.
With atrocities committed in the past still in the memories of the people, many of them are on their toes ready to flee their areas at any sign of a skirmish and run to shelter near government areas in the regions.
Only this week the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) compiled a report reflecting how serious the situation is in some areas in Darfur in particular and Sudan in general.
It said close to five times as many people have been displaced in Darfur in the first months of 2021 than in all of 2020.
"In March and April, fighting was reported in several Darfur states, and South Kordufan. There have also been reports of skirmishes on the Ethiopian border but these have not caused displacement. There are currently 237,000 newly displaced people in 2021,” the report published by OCHA reads.
As people have not settled fully to attend to their traditional farming, food shortage remains the norm. The UN report said about 7.1 million people are severely food insecure.
It argued that the prices of cereals are at exceptionally high levels, due to currency weakness and soaring costs of agricultural inputs.
Sudan has recently adopted a free market mechanism to decide the exchange rate of the national currency, the Sudanese pound, against major currencies. At present one US dollar is about 400 Sudanese pounds, up from one US dollar to 55 Sudanese pounds only last year, sending prices to unprecedented level.
The pinch of the shortage, according to the UN report, is felt in remote areas in central Sudan and areas that have been the scene of clashes in Sudan.
“The highest levels of food insecurity are reported in South Kordufan, North Kordufan, North Darfur and Gedaref states. In South Kordufan and North Darfur the main drivers of food insecurity are compounded by inter-communal violence,” it said.
This situation is compounded by the impact of COVID-19. According to the Sudanese Ministry of Health 32,546 COVID-19 cases and 2,287 deaths have been confirmed since 3 March 2020. And Sudan is now in its third coronavirus wave and the number of cases is likely higher than reported. The National Medical Supplies Fund reports that only 43% of medicines are available.
The report concluded that given the higher than anticipated number of people affected by shocks this year, humanitarian charities need urgent and flexible emergency funding.
But as of 29 April the 2021 Sudan Humanitarian Response Plan had received only US$197.8 million—10.2% of the requirement.
-0- PANA MO/MA 9May2021
