By William Madouk Garang
The United Nations Humanitarian has approved $14 million as a direct charitable assistance to 262,521 people who are affected by continued violence and severe flooding.
Five states across the country are expected to benefit from the fresh allocated charitable funding which are Unity, Upper Nile, Northern Bhar el Ghazel, Jonglei, Warrap States and Abyei Administrative Area.
UN Humanitarian chief, Martin Griffiths released the fund from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to support the provision of direct humanitarian assistance to vulnerable families.
Sara Beysolow Nyanti, Humanitarian Coordinator for South Sudan said the funding will reduce people’s vulnerability and protection risks through activities implemented by the United Nations humanitarian agencies in South Sudan.
Ms. Nyanti emphasized the need to prioritize people with the most acute needs among internally displace people and host communities.
“Women, girls, the elderly, persons with specific needs, and those who stayed behind in hard-to-reach areas due to mobility constraints, often bear the brunt of protracted crises and desperately need support,” Nyanti said.
“People are going through unimaginable suffering. We cannot leave behind the most vulnerable,” she added.
The Fund will be disbursed to five implementing agencies which are; IOM, UNICEF, UNHCR, WFP and WHO to ensure that humanitarian assistance reach people in need as quickly as possible.
The implementing agencies will use a targeted area-based approach to ensure that the much-needed support reaches people with the highest severity of needs.
Affected people have experienced multiple shocks which have led to secondary and tertiary displacements with increased protection risks, loss of livelihoods, and the erosion of previously provided support.
South Sudan’s humanitarian crisis has been underfunded across all humanitarian interventions leaving millions of people at risk.
“We need long-term solutions to close the rising funding gaps and pave the way towards development,” Ms. Nyanti concluded.
The funded projects will mainstream protection, gender and inclusion sensitivity, and collective efforts for accountability to the affected population in the response.
So far an estimated 9.4 million of the most vulnerable people in South Sudan will need urgent life-saving assistance and protection in 2023, compared to 8.9 million in 2022.
As of December 13, the 2022 Humanitarian Response Plan was funded at 67.3 percent. South Sudan continues to be the most violent context for aid workers.
About the CERF:
Since its establishment 16 years ago, CERF has been one of the fastest mechanisms for providing emergency funding to people in need through rapid allocations to new and deteriorating crises, or where funding has fallen short.
The fund pools contributions from a range of donors, and resources are allocated on strict life-saving criteria to help the most vulnerable and at-risk populations.
In 2022, the CERF 2022 has allocated a total of US$54 million for humanitarian projects in South Sudan including the latest $14 million allocation for underfunded emergencies.
Earlier this year, $15 million were provided as an Early Action allocation to mitigate the impact of the projected floods in Unity State.
Another $10 million were allocated under the Rapid Response window to respond to people impacted by violence in Abyei Administrative Area and Twic County.
US 15 million were allocated under the Rapid Response window to address people’s increasing food insecurity in Jonglei and Unity states.