This report was issued by OCHA Khartoum, Sudan. It covers the period from 4 March to 8 March. The next report will be issued on or around 12 March 2009.
I. HIGHLIGHTS/KEY PRIORITIES
On 4 March 2009, the Government of Sudan announced the expulsion of 13 international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and the termination of 3 national NGOs.
The thirteen international NGOs that were expelled are: Action Contre La Faim (ACF), Solidarités, Save the Children UK and Save the Children US; Médecins Sans Frontières Holland (MSF-H) and Médecins Sans Frontières France (MSF-F); CARE International; Oxfam GB; Mercy Corps; International Rescue Committee (IRC); Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC); Cooperative Housing Foundation (CHF); and PADCO. The national agencies whose activities have been terminated are: SUDO; AMAL Centre for Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence, and the Khartoum Centre for Human Rights Development and Environment.
These 16 organizations employ nearly 40 percent of the aid workers in Darfur – 6,500 national and international workers. The total number of humanitarian staff affected by the Government decision in northern Sudan, including Darfur, is 7,610, of which 308 of that number are international staff and 7302 are national.
According to the Humanitarian Country team in Sudan reports the following implications of the resulting decision by the Government to halt the programs of these 16 NGOs:
1) 1.5 million beneficiaries will no longer have access to health and nutrition services. Host and IDP populations will be particularly affected. 2) Water supply, sanitation and hygiene services provided by these NGOs to 1.16 million people will soon be interrupted. (Blue Nile – 102,000; Eastern States – 50,000; and Darfur – 1,007,000).
3) Some 1.1 million people will stop receiving general food distribution and the treatment of some 4,000 children for severe and moderate malnutrition over the next three months could be interrupted. In the Non-Food Item (NFI) and Emergency Shelter (ES) sector, 670,000 individuals will be affected. Distributions of Non-Food Relief Items (which include cooking equipment and other basic household goods) and emergency shelter will immediately cease in 19 camps and locations in Darfur.
