IOM. The IOM team is assessing the needs of Sudanese refugees in the Chad-Sudan border area.
According to the latest figures released today by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), Sudan now has a staggering 10.7 million people displaced by the conflict, of whom 9 million are internally displaced. It called on the international community to work together to urgently scale up the humanitarian response to the world's largest displacement crisis.
Of the 10.7 million people displaced, 1.7 million have fled to neighbouring countries, with Sudanese accounting for the majority (62 per cent), the data shows.
Among these neighbouring countries, Chad received the largest number of border crossers at 37 per cent, followed by South Sudan (30 per cent) and Egypt (24 per cent), while Ethiopia, Libya and the Central African Republic hosted the remaining cross-border crossers. According to the International Organization for Migration, this situation has further increased humanitarian needs, adding to an already crisis-stricken region.
The biggest displacement crisis
Today, one in eight IDPs in the world is in Sudan, and the needs of these groups are enormous: severe shortages of food, shelter, health care and sanitation facilities, putting them at high risk of disease, malnutrition and violence, according to IOM Director-General Amy Pope.
Pope said the humanitarian response so far has not been sufficient to meet these urgent needs. "We cannot turn a deaf ear to the millions of people who need support," she stressed.
In particular, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has noted that more than 6 million people have been displaced from their homes during the armed conflict in the past nine months alone;
The impact of conflict is far-reaching
The organization stressed that the conflict in Sudan continues to have a profound impact on ordinary people as it has caused damage to health facilities, schools, roads, water and electricity resources and telecommunications assets.
These devastations have dramatically limited access to basic necessities and life-saving services, making disease outbreaks, hunger and malnutrition a pervasive threat. Moreover, the chaos created by conflict increases the vulnerability of specific groups of people, especially women and girls, to sexual and gender-based violence.
Multiple forms of life-saving assistance
To date, IOM has provided life-saving assistance to nearly 1.2 million people in Sudan and neighbouring countries, reaching more than 650,000 people in Sudan alone. This assistance includes essential protection and health services, emergency shelter and relief items, cash support, the supply of clean water and sanitation supplies, and critical onward travel support.
With the support of the International Organization for Migration, nearly 150,000 people were able to continue their journey across borders and eventually reach safety in neighbouring countries. These are places where they can access humanitarian services in safe and dignified conditions.
Crisis response plan
Since the beginning of the crisis, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has been grappling with growing humanitarian needs inside and outside Sudan, even though many of its staff have been directly affected and displaced.
Today, IOM remains committed to meeting these most urgent needs and is scaling up its assistance through the newly developed Sudan Crisis Response Plan. The plan needs to raise $168 million.
