Sudan

On 9 July 2011, Sudan de facto split into two distinct countries: the Republic of Sudan and the Republic of South Sudan. Abyei, South Kordofan, and Blue Nile are the three Transitional Areas because of their frontier status. In 2011, conflict has once again erupted in both South Kordofan and Blue Nile States, resulting in massive displacement of people within Sudan, as well as to neighbouring South Sudan and Ethiopia.

Republic of Sudan (including Transitional Areas)

Sudan remains a humanitarian and development challenge. The problems are chronic and those addressing them are few, largely due to the expulsions of many Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in 2009. Malnutrition rates are beyond emergency levels and disease outbreaks are common. The number of refugees and internally displaced persons remain high, while access to food for the most vulnerable parts of the population is a concern.

The humanitarian needs in Darfur remain huge and are a priority for the international humanitarian community. There are now between 1.9 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) living in camps in the Darfur region, in addition to 40,000 refugees from Chad. A renewed wave of violence in 2010 and 2011 has caused large scale displacement of parts of the population. Over 2.5 million people are affected by the conflict and are in need of some form of assistance. Incidents targeting humanitarian workers in Darfur occur frequently and have steadily contributed to a reduced humanitarian space.

Abyei, Blue Nile and South Kordofan are known as the Transitional Areas. In both Blue Nile and South Kordofan, fighting between the Sudan Armed Forces and the SPLM erupted in the course of 2011. It is estimated that 60,000 people have been severely affected by the outbreak of conflict in Blue Nile State. Tens of thousands have sought refuge in Ethiopia and South Sudan. The European Commission is scaling up its response to assist the displaced and is advocating for greater humanitarian access.

Conflict in South Kordofan broke out in June 2011. An estimated 200,000 people are thought displaced, of these 20,000 sought refuge in South Sudan. Humanitarian access remains limited in the greater Abyei area, from which 110,000 people were displaced during fighting in late May 2011.

Republic of South Sudan

Ever since the prospect of independence from the north became real in 2005, hundreds of thousands of South Sudanese living in the north have returned to South Sudan. It is estimated that more than 2.5 million people have returned to South Sudan since 2005, and are yet to be fully integrated due to a lack of basic services and weak infrastructure.

Tens of thousands of southerners are now stranded en route, while many others who have been living in the north, risk being expelled or having their papers revoked given the new political landscape. The projected worse-case scenario for 2011 foresees between 300,000 to 500,000 people returning by the end of 2011, a situation that is likely to put further pressure on available resources in the newly independent South Sudan.

Furthermore, inter-tribal conflict has plagued many parts of Southern Sudan, resulting in over 150,000 displaced people, hundreds of deaths, and abductions. A lot of the fighting is sparked by cattle raids and subsequent revenge attacks. Automatic weapons left over from the civil war have made bloodshed and death common traits of today's raids.

Fighting in the Transitional Areas has also increased the number of people seeking refuge in South Sudan. As of October 2011, around 100.000 displaced people from Abyei were in South Sudan waiting to return to their homes. An estimated 18,500 people from South Kordofan have fled to Unity State in South Sudan.

Stories from the field

Related information

Factsheet South Sudan (03.2012)
Humanitarian Implementation plan Sudan and South Sudan (10.2011)

Press releases

Other EU websites about Sudan & South Sudan:

Development and Cooperation: Sudan - South Sudan
External relations: Sudan - South Sudan