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Humanitarian Action for Children 2017 - Sudan

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Sudan
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UNICEF
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2017 Requirements: US$110,247,169

Two million Sudanese children under 5 are acutely malnourished and 550,000 of these children are severely malnourished. Within the African continent, 13 per cent of all children suffering from severe acute malnutrition (SAM) are located in the Sudan.5 Malnutrition and food insecurity are exacerbated by conflict-related displacements, El Niño, epidemics, floods and droughts. The ongoing violence in Darfur, the Kordofans, Blue Nile and Abyei has forced more than 3.2 million people6 to flee their homes. Among these are 1.9 million children, many of whom have been separated from their families and affected by grave violations. As a result of renewed conflict and high levels of food insecurity in South Sudan, an increasing number of refugees are seeking protection in the Sudan, which has stretched already limited host community capacities. The Sudan currently hosts 250,000 South Sudanese refugees, with more than 100,000 new arrivals in 2016 (70 per cent of these are children).7 Displacements often leave children with limited access to basic services, while exposing them to violence, exploitation, sexual violence, malnutrition and diseases.

Humanitarian strategy

In 2017, UNICEF will continue to support children affected by conflict, cyclical floods, drought, epidemics and chronic underdevelopment, particularly in hard-to-reach areas where children’s needs are most acute. UNICEF and partners will continue to deliver an integrated response, including scaling up interventions in conflict-affected areas for internally displaced and refugee populations and working with the Government to strengthen national systems throughout the county. For the first time in the Sudan, the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) will use a multi-year approach covering the period 2017–2019, and will be linked with the United Nations Development Assistance Framework 2018–2021 planning process, which is also under development. Discussions are ongoing with the donor community to identify how best to support this multi-year approach. UNICEF developed a strategy for cash programming in 2016 and plans to begin implementation in 2017. An inter-agency resilience programme will be developed in Kassala state to combat acute malnutrition. UNICEF has also continued to advocate to reach children in Blue Nile, the Nuba Mountains and Jebel Marra, which have been partly inaccessible since 2011. This will involve leveraging UNICEF’s influence with the Government and other partners, including as cluster lead for the child protection sub-cluster and co-lead for nutrition, WASH and education.

Results from 2016

As of 31 October 2016, UNICEF had received US$51.8 million against the US$117 million appeal (44 per cent funded).9 By the end of October 2016, more than 3 million conflict-affected people (60 per cent children) had accessed primary health care services, almost double the 2016 target of 1.8 million people. In addition, all 3,741 unaccompanied and separated children (1,739 girls)10 that were identified were reunified with their families or placed in alternative care arrangements, exceeding the 2016 target of 2,200 children. The year 2016 saw significant progress towards the protection of children in armed conflict, with the United Nations and the Government of the Sudan signing an action plan to prevent the recruitment and use of children on 27 March, and the United Nations and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (non-state armed group) signing a similar action plan on 23 November. In addition, 173,973 children aged 6 to 59 months with SAM were admitted for treatment. More than 400,000 caregivers received infant and young child feeding counselling. While 44,339 affected people gained access to improved drinking water, this represents only 15 per cent of the target for 2016,11 with the UNICEF WASH interventions only 35 per cent funded. Similarly, only 26 per cent of the 2016 target for school-aged children accessing safe learning spaces was met by the end of October due to funding constraints.