nlp-thedeep/humsetbias huggingface dataset:
UNHCR in Sudan launched an Ethiopian refugee response plan for the period November 2020 to June 2021 for a projected 100,000 refugees at a cost of $147 million. Over 30 partner organizations are involved in this response. Sudan hosts one of the largest refugee populations in Africa with over 1 million refugees and asylum seekers in the country, according to UNHCR.
WHH is also ensuring that refugees get timely access to emergency shelter and household supplies. Protection activities are also being provided to women and children from both the refugee and host community where they are provided with safe spaces and are sensitized on key protection issues and referral pathways.
WHH is responding to the emergency needs of the most vulnerable, ensuring that people have access to drinkable water, safe and proper sanitation facilities and improving their awareness about hygiene related issues, with a particular focus on COVID 19 prevention.
In Um Rakoba camp, humanitarians are racing against the clock to meet the needs of these refugees. With funding of over $520,000 from the SHF, the international NGO Welthungerhilfe  ( WHH )  has been scaling up its response to cater for the refugees.
The delivery follows the arrival of 4.5 metric tons of syringes and safety boxes, part of a Gavi funded and supported global stockpile, that UNICEF delivered on behalf of the COVAX Facility on 26 February 2021, critical for the safe and effective vaccination.
On 3 March, Sudan became the first country in the Middle East and North Africa region to receive vaccines against COVID 19 from the COVAX facility as over 800,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine touched down at the Khartoum International Airport
WFP highlighted upcoming plans to support the Government of Sudan to scale up and establish a nationally owned school feeding programme, underpinned by a national policy framework.
( 28 March 2019 ) Refugees in Rashad camp has also shown minimal improvement, with 41 percent of the population being food insecure, reduction by 3 percent points since last year. In Abu Gebeiha camp and Abbassiya camp, food insecure populations were at 31 percent and 38 percent respectively.
Sudan's protracted crisis continues to create water, hygiene, and sanitation needs for vulnerable people. Key drivers are deteriorating economy, conflict, food insecurity, malnutrition, floods, and disease, including COVID 19.
Shelter and NFI needs are projected to increase from 1.2 million in 2020 to 1.9 million in 2021. Based on the sectors' detailed analysis of key indicators, an estimated 43 localities will have acute needs that are either extreme or catastrophic  ( severity 4 or 5 ) .
Drivers of malnutrition include high income poverty, poor WASH conditions leading to epidemics, limited access to health services, illiteracy and high food prices contributing to inadequate food intake and dietary diversity at household level. Inappropriate feeding practices and cultural norms affect children's growth and development from an early age.
Khartoum “Open Areas' have largely remained underserved with very limited partners with limited funding to cover the overwhelming sanitation needs in all the refugee hosting locations.
The record rains and flooding in 2020 has worsened the latrine situation across the country, with some latrines having collapsed, worsening the plight of the refugees
The level of food insecurity is particularly high among refugee households in Darfur, where 58 percent are food insecure compared to 37 percent in Southern and Eastern Sudan. Female headed households are more prone to food insecurity. Furthermore, 11 percent of refugee households have poor food consumption.
Heavier than usual rains also negatively affected refugees with an increased risk of suffering waterborne diseases driven by heavy flooding. This has resulted in increasing concerns regarding the health and nutrition status of refugees, especially among South Sudanese refugees arriving from areas of South Sudan facing emergency levels of acute malnutrition and food insecurity.
The economic difficulties facing Sudan, the historic levels of inflation across the country, and the COVID 19 pandemic that resulted in a total lockdown have made it difficult to maintain medicine stocks across the country. This has been especially hard on vulnerable groups including refugees in urban areas
Although the first wave of the pandemic is still ongoing in Sudan in which the observed cases among refugees have been low, the risk of outbreaks remains very high.
The fragile health system coupled with recurrent multiple emergencies and the ongoing economic crisis in Sudan have negatively impacted the health and nutrition levels of refugees living in Sudan.
The presence of landmines and explosive remnants of war  ( ERW )  not only poses direct threat of killing and injuring the local population but it also limits humanitarian access to the vulnerable communities, hampering early recovery and development efforts.
Globally, 45 per cent of all child deaths are associated with under nutrition. In the context of Sudan, this implies approximately 40,000 child deaths annually.
In the context of the second wave of COVID19, it is necessary to maintain isolation and case management facilities, strengthen the surveillance system and maintain the rapid response teams.
Conflict increases burden on the health system and further reduces the availability and access to specialized services. The pressure on the health system will be exacerbated by the continuous shortages in essential medical supplies and medicines.
According to the 2020 Multi Sectorial Needs Assessment  ( MSNA ) , 55 per cent of those seeking health assistance had to pay for medical consultations, 74 per cent had no access to free medicines, 23 per cent reported shortages in the availability of medical treatments, and 63 per cent could not find the medicines they needed.
Data is lacking on the prevalence of disability in Sudan; an estimated 15 per cent of the total population have some type of disability. Their condition is exacerbated by the deteriorating economy, lack of supportive social networks, and shortages in specialized health care providers.
There is also a need to increase the monthly incentives currently paid to refugee volunteer teachers to help them remaining engaged.
Globally and in Sudan, COVID 19 has disrupted delivery of essential services and continues to claim lives and disrupt livelihoods. As of 1 March 2021, Sudan had over 28,505 confirmed COVID 19 cases and 1,892 associated deaths, since the first COVID 19 positive case was announced on 13 March 2020
Cereal prices began to follow a steady increasing trend in late 2017 due to the difficult macro economic situation, coupled with fuel shortages and the high prices of agricultural inputs inflating production and transportation costs. In 2020, disruptions to marketing and trading activities related to the measures implemented to contain the spread of COVID 19 and to widespread floods provided further upward pressure on prices.
The UN and its partners launched on 19 July the COVID 19 addendum to the Humanitarian Response plan, a US$283 million appeal to address the most immediate and critical needs of millions of Sudanese people affected by the health and humanitarian consequences of COVID 19
The Federal Government, the United Nations and humanitarian partners have joined efforts to prevent and respond to the COVID 19 pandemic in Sudan. A COVID 19 Country Preparedness and Response Plan  ( CPRP ) , organized around nine pillars, is currently being implemented by UN agencies, NGOs and other partners in support of the Sudanese Government led response
Because of the fragile economy, more and more people are unable to meet their basic needs, as high inflation continues to erode families' purchasing power. An average local food basket takes up at least 75 per cent of household income.
Before COVID 19, about 9.3 million people were already in need of humanitarian support across Sudan.
The necessary COVID 19 related containment measures have also indirect negative impacts, limiting many poor households' physical access to areas where they typically earn income from daily labour.
Access to justice for GBV survivors is limited due to community lack of awareness on GBV vis a vis legal / justice mechanisms, lack of legal aid, shortage of female police officers, community distrust of formal legal mechanisms, transport costs, legal fees as well as weak coordination and referral mechanisms.
For sanitation and hygiene, 746,000 South Sudanese refugees and 308,000 non South Sudanese require assistance. Most of them are in Khartoum, White Nile, Kassala, South Darfur, East Darfur, West Kordofan, and South Kordofan.
Additionally, 1.05 million refugees need WASH services; 500,000 South Sudanese and 190,000 non South Sudanese refugees need water services.
There are five million vulnerable residents throughout the country considered in the worst severity of needs as follows: 5.03 million people needs access to hygiene services, 3.7 million people needs access to sanitation, and 1.4 million needs access to basic water services. About 2.2 million IDPs are in the worst severity of needs.
IDPs, refugees, and vulnerable residents will need continued WASH support. In some locations, these population groups walk for over five kilometres to fetch water and can only access around 7  8 litres per person per day, especially during the dry season.
The limited number of latrines leads to open defecation.
Staple food prices continued atypically increasing across most main markets in Sudan during the post harvest period of February 2021. This was driven by the extremely high production and transportation costs, limited carryover stock from last year, and above average demand for sorghum and millet for local consumption due to shortages, and high wheat and wheat flour prices. Cereal prices in February remained on average over 200 percent higher than last year and over six times higher than the five year average.
Over half of the refugee population  ( 556,000 )  in Sudan are under 18 years old and a significant number are unaccompanied and separated children  ( UASC ) .
Last month, the Central Bank of Sudan announced a new policy of flexible management of the exchange rate to unify the official and parallel market rates, setting the indicative rate at 375 SDG to the US dollar from the previous rate of 55 SDG. During first three weeks of February, the exchange rate varied between 350 and 400 SDG per dollar on the parallel market.
The average cost of local food basket in Sudan sharply increased by 20 per cent from January 2021 to February 2021, according to the February 2021 issue of the World Food Programme  ( WFP )  Market Monitor for Sudan. While the percentage increases every month, this is the highest spike in recent months, according to WFP. This increase is in line with the continuously increasing inflation, which hit 330 per cent in February from 304 per cent in January and close to 270 per cent in December 2020, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics.
For 2021, humanitarian agencies emphasise the importance of early and flexible funding to respond to sudden onset needs due to conflict or natural disaster induced civilian displacement, as well as to sustain regular operations. There is also a need for development emergency funding to complement humanitarian response early to address under development and marginalisation.
In August 2020, the Federal Ministry of Health  ( FMOH )  declared an outbreak of vaccine derived PolioVirus type 2  ( cVDPV2 )  after positive samples were collected from patients with Acute Flaccid Paralysis  ( AFP ) , the environment, and from asymptomatic children. By mid September, 23 cases of cVDPV2 were confirmed from AFP patients across 10 of Sudan's 18 states indicating a wide spread of the virus.
There are only two ventilators in each of the following states: River Nile, Blue Nile, West Darfur, West Kordofan, and South Kordofan.
Some localities in areas affected by flooding have shifted to higher levels of food insecurity compared to the June 2020 projection; five localities shifted from minimal IPC phase 1 to phase 2, while 10 localities shifted from stress  ( IPC Phase 2 )  to crisis levels of food insecurity  ( IPC Phase 3 ) . A few localities reported that 5 10 per cent of the affected population has shifted to emergency levels of food insecurity  ( IPC phase 4 ) .
The five Darfur states in addition to South and West Kordofan are currently hosting the highest numbers of school aged IDP children.
The Q1 FSMS  ( Food Security Monitoring System )  also shows that 36 percent of the refugee households resort to negative livelihood coping strategies, such as selling household goods, reducing non food expenses such as health and education, spending savings, and depleting their assets.
The case fatality ratio  ( CFR )  reached 6.1 per cent   one of the highest in the region.
In addition to the unfavourable external conditions, refugees continue to face challenges to access work permits, despite improvements on refugee eligibility to work.
The congestion of refugee camps has emphasised the need for sustainable shelter solutions and camp decongestion through the relocation of refugees.
Children with disabilities are often out of school and require specialized support to access, and then remain, in education. For these children, school environments can offer an additional layer of protection and help them access specialized community support services.
The current economic situation is likely to limit improvements to health systems, with significant disease outbreaks likely to continue.
Refugees continue to arrive in Sudan with a projected 40,500 arrivals in 2021 excluding the influx of refugees from the Tigray region of Ethiopia. Depending on the security situation in the neighbouring countries,
Sudan remains prone to several communicable diseases, including measles, cholera, chikungunya and dengue. In 2020, Sudan faced outbreaks of viral haemorrhagic fevers  ( VHF ) , malaria, vaccine derived polio virus and chikungunya. This is mainly attributed to low access to safe drinking water and sanitation; poor environmental sanitation; and low vaccination coverage. It is also exacerbated by weak health and WASH infrastructures.
Across the country, education related costs have skyrocketed due to a combination of increasing inflation and COVID 19 related restrictions. In White Nile State over 15,000 children remain out of school.
The agreement reached between the civilian transitional Government and the United States for the removal of Sudan from the State Sponsor of Terrorism List in late October 2020 should open up direct banking relations between Sudan and the global financial system.
Reduced smuggling of basic goods and gold exports can pave the way for the recovery of the Sudanese economy. The expected USD $500 million reduction in remittances in 2020 due to loss of jobs in the Gulf will partly offset these gains.
By November 2020, inflation has risen to over 254 per cent.
Since January 2018, the economy has been in a double crisis of recession and high inflation, with GDP declining by over 2 per cent in 2018 and 2019.
16 million people in need of minimal humanitarian assistance, 17.4 million people in need of stress humanitarian assistance, 6.1 million people in need of severe humanitarian assistance, 6.7 million people in need of severe humanitarian assistance and 0.6 million people in need of catastrophic humanitarian assistance.
IDPs and refugees are highly vulnerable, particularly at risk of not accessing basic services such as birth registration and may suffer harassment and direct violence triggered by displacement.
The position of women and girls is further diminished due to their lack of access to and control of the resources and viable coping strategies they need to survive and recover, as well as the protection of their human rights and their recourse to justice.
Weak health and wash systems and increase of food prices drive malnutrition in Sudan, and poor nutrition constitutes a threat to the development of children under five. The rate of malnutrition has changed little in three decades, with an estimated 52 per cent of cases living in non conflict states.
In September in West Darfur, armed men ambushed a humanitarian convoy on its way to Masterei, looted personal effects of the passengers and temporarily detained the passengers.
Shortages of fuel across Sudan affected the delivery of humanitarian assistance as transportation of aid supplies was delayed while transporters waited to access fuel.
Under the Climate Change Initiative  ( IKI )  project, preparatory work for land reforestation has started in White Nile and East Darfur, in close coordination with the Forest National Corporation.
The economic challenges persist with high inflation rate and increasing costs of food, affecting the living conditions and food security of millions of people.
As part of the PHL  ( post harvesting loss )  project, after a storage period of three four months, bags opening ceremonies took place in localities of White Nile, Kassala and Gedarif states. The ceremonies enabled farmers to witness the benefits of hermetic storage bags in preserving grain quality and compare with the result of grains stored with traditional bags. The activities are implemented under strict precautionary measures in the context of COVID 19 and provided the opportunity to communicate awareness messages on COVID 19
WFP June Market Monitor showed another increase in the national average retail price of sorghum compared to the previous month  ( increase of 10 percent ) , 219 percent higher compared to last year, and 584 percent higher compared to the five year average. This is mainly due to the diminishing supply from the last year production, which was far below the average production of the last five years
In June, the WFP managed United Nations Humanitarian Air Services  ( UNHAS )  continued to transport light cargo within Sudan for UN agencies and NGOs to hard to reach destinations. In addition, UNHAS international air bridge  ( Khartoum – Addis Ababa – Khartoum )  transported in June 204 passengers for 38 UN agencies, NGOs and diplomatic community through 14 flights.
Since the beginning of the COVID 19 outbreak, WFP transported 1,354 MT of non food items to field locations at the request of UN agencies and NGOs. The items include non food items for the response to the COVID 19 outbreak. During June, 284 MT were transported, and 198 MT stored for the humanitarian community
The provision of WFP Logistics services  ( storage, transportation, fuel and vehicle maintenance )  was available in June to UN agencies and NGOs through Bilateral Service Provision at full cost recovery and coordinated by the Logistic Sector.
Nutrition activities were delivered in line with the guidance provided on COVID 19 prevention and control measures. Over 250,000 children 6 59 months of age, pregnant and breastfeeding women received nutrition assistance in June 2020.
The reporting of gender based violence  ( GBV )  incidents is believed to remain underreported across Sudan. Some of the causes that can lead to this is the taboo, shame, stigma and lack of awareness of current reporting mechanisms in place. These mechanisms require strengthening and scaling up including awareness raising on multi sectorial referral pathways.
Water provision in Al Mashaga settlement, South Darfur State, for the Central African Republic refugees also continues to be delivered via water trucking, due to delays in borehole drilling. Latrine coverage remains quite low in White Nile State, with a usage ratio of more than 70 people per latrine in most of the refugee camps.
The CRP 2020 provided a multi sectoral inter agency response on protection, health, nutrition, WaSH, education, shelter, NFIs, food security, and livelihoods for refugees living across 104 different sites in Sudan
Around 67 per cent of these refugees live in out ofcamp settlements, among the host community, while the rest remain in camps – especially in East Sudan and White Nile State. The fragile situation in neighboring countries continues to force people to cross the border into Sudan, seeking safety and life saving assistance.
Populations in areas affected by emergency situations due to conflicts, natural or man made disasters received timely assistance during and in the aftermath of a shock; and displaced populations, refugees, returnees and host communities were provided with assistance to meet their basic needs and/or access basic services while increasing their self reliance.
Heavy rains caused damage to houses, livestock, farmland, infrastructure, and services. Flood water and damage was record high in all states.
Lack of standardized shelters design for the ES/NFI sector as each NGO has its own design. Lack of staged plan to implement semi permanent or longerterm shelter options as many IDPs will remain in their location of displacement. Returnees need also more permanent shelter solutions to ensure durable solutions and stability of their returns. Lack of shared resources to follow the current activities of other ES/NFI partners.
The need for adequate lighting in refugee camps and settlement areas, such as solar lanterns and streetlights is an important factor to support protection and physical safety of vulnerable refugees.
Shelter and NFI needs have increased in 2020, despite the decline in armed conflict since 2015, and corresponding reduction in new civilian displacement.
• Provision of dignity kits as part of a larger GBV intervention to raise awareness about GBV and available services.
Meanwhile, there is a need to increase the number of education facilities, train teachers, provide specialized protection services, including the registration of IDPs, issuance of birth certificate and other ID documentation
Based on the protection monitoring findings, IDPs and returnees were supported through the establishment and strengthening of CBPNs, implementation of community support projects, establishment of and support to communitybased dispute resolution structures, training programmes, people with special needs were identified, assisted through projects, including cash for shelter, NFIs, psychosocial support  ( PSS ) , psychological first aid  ( PFA ) , information counseling, legal assistance and provision of other in kind assistance or referred to specialized service providers.
The issues and cases were discussed, decisions and recommendations for follow up and provision of response made at the state level protection working group  ( PWG )  meetings. Issues requiring other sectors' interventions such as FSL, education, health, registration, nutrition and sanitation were communicated in a timely manner.
In 2020, 2.55 million protracted IDPs remained in need of protection services and humanitarian assistance.
Sustaining nutrition services for the refugees remains a challenge. With the recent influx of Tigray refugees further stretches the resources. Sudan hosted around 1.1 million refugees.
While there has been a major focus on the provision of nutrition treatment services in conflict affected states, most Sudan's acutely malnourished children  ( 52 per cent )  are living in eastern and central states  ( non conflict affected states ) . An estimated 3.6 million children suffer from wasting annually in Sudan.
Standard Expanded Nutrition Survey  ( SENS )  conducted among refugees in White Nile, East Darfur, South and West Kordofan indicated ‘critical' rates  ( >15 per cent )  of Global Acute Malnutrition  ( GAM )  and Severe Acute Malnutrition  ( SAM )   ( >3 per cent )  among children 6 to 59 months of age.
However, more sustainable shelter solutions for returnees and protracted IDPs affected by not only recent conflict but also natural hazards need to be addressed.
Currently, about 30 per cent of schools do not have latrines and fewer than 50 per cent of children have access to handwashing at schools.
The non food interventions need to be scaled up and significant investments need to be made in water and sanitation infrastructure in schools.  ( HRP Recommendations )
Many IDPs face harassment when trying to farm, which contributed to food insecurity. Access to protection services remained a concern, coupled with weak rule of law and social protection mechanisms. IDPs and refugees were highly vulnerable, particularly at risk of not accessing basic services such as birth registration and may suffer harassment and direct violence triggered by displacement.
Sudan experienced outbreaks of water and vector borne diseases, including Rift Valley Fever, chikungunya and malaria in 2020. These outbreaks coupled with low investment in basic services  ( e.g. poor WASH, vector control and health infrastructure )  resulted in excessive demand on the provision of healthcare in an otherwise already strained health system.
All international airports are closed for entry and exit with the exception of humanitarian and cargo shipments.
Reported COVID 19 Cases in Sudan Figures on cases updated as of 15 June 2020: 8,020 Confirmed, 2,966 Recovered, 487 Deaths
With regards to education, schools were closed for most part of 2020, with many still non committal regarding the COVID 19 protocols in 2021. The rollout of the new curriculum poses a challenge as well, due to the lack of new textbooks. The EMIS  ( Education Management Information System )  has not provided yet accurate and timely programming data.
Two key challenges have severely affected the ES/NFIs activities in 2020, mainly COVID 19 measures, impacting on the movement of items between states and the sever fuel shortage, affecting delivery of goods.
The rate of incentives paid to the volunteer teachers is insufficient given the ongoing economic crisis, and some have already notified they would not be able to continue teaching. In addition, the Federal Ministry of Education set out COVID 19 protocols that schools should abide by ahead of re opening. This is a challenge for all schools, where there is limited if no access to water
There is an inadequate number of classrooms available in camp settings, making it challenging to maintain the social distance. An assessment done on WASH highlighted that the number of functioning latrines is also inadequate. Water supply also remains a persistent challenge.
In Khartoum, out of the nine so called Open Areas, only two are covered by WaSH partners while seven remain with no WaSH support, despite the dire need. In the newly established Um Rakuba refugee camp, Gedaref State, emergency water is provided through water trucking to refugees from Ethiopia's Tigray region, at a below minimum emergency standards  ( 20 l/p/d ) .
While some progress has been made to improve access to public education, refugees still face barriers when it comes to public services. For instance, refugees often face higher fees and rates for public services compared to the rest of the population. In addition, despite food assistance, most refugees continue to have very poor nutrition levels and need further support.
The inclusion of refugees in the national development programmes and access to local infrastructures, as well as the strengthening of education, health, nutrition and water, sanitation and hygiene  ( WaSH )  conditions are critical to ensure the capacity of local service systems to absorb and respond to the increasing needs of the refugee and host communities.
A multi sectoral approach is required to address refugees' protection and assistance needs through long term interventions, especially focusing on self reliance and wellbeing. At the same time, it is also key to widen and uphold refugees' rights by aligning Sudanese national legislation and practices with the 1951 Refugee Convention.
50 partners were participated to deliver assistance to emergency crisis and protractedly affected people. In Darfur, almost 2.2 million people including IDPs, returnees and vulnerable residents were assisted with and Gazera, Gedaref, Kassala, Khartoum, North Kordofan, Red Sea, Sennar, South Kordofan, West Kordofan and White Nile more than 1.06 Million people were reached.
Sudan hosts one of the largest refugee populations in Africa, more than one million, with an overwhelming majority of them coming from South Sudan and others refugees and asylum seekers fleeing violence and persecution in neighboring countries – including Eritrea, the Central African Republic, Ethiopia and Chad – as well as the war in Syria and Yemen.
WASH needs continued to be a big load for protracted displacement, and host families. During the of 2020, the effect of the economic crisis has reduced the access to water and sanitation as those services were provided at a higher cost or no longer provided.
There are also substantial gaps in refugee out of camp settlements and dispersed self settlements in South and West Kordofan and the Khartoum ‘open areas'. Further, the situation is exacerbated as partners have to provide shelter and non food items to all newly arrived refugees in camps, in line with the Government of Sudan's policy.
For refugees living in camps, over crowding and congestion remains a serious concern, with all camps currently hosting populations beyond their initial capacity.
Shelter/NFI sector responded to the needs of flood affected, fire affected people, IDPs, returnees as well as host communities in all states, with more than 520,000 people reached with NFI and almost 75,000 people reached with shelter assistance.
New displacement has occurred mainly in West Darfur and eastern Sudan due to inter communal conflict. The estimate of the number of IDPs was revised upward from 1.6 million in 2019 to 2.55 million in 2020. New IDPs that were previously not known to the sector were found thanks to assessments that reached new areas, including non government controlled areas.
The average national retail price of sorghum reached 97.33 SDG per kg in February 2021, an increase of 4.9 per cent compared to January 2021. This increase is due to the inflationary increase in the cost of production and transportation, in addition to the current high demand as the harvest from the previous seasons were depleted earlier.
Access to justice for GBV survivors was very low due to lack of community awareness on legal and justice issues related to GBV; lack of legal aid; shortages of female police officers; community distrust of formal legal mechanisms; centralized handling of cases at state capitals which disadvantage survivors from poor backgrounds due to transport costs and legal fees; and weak referral mechanisms.
Women and girls lacked access to quality specialized lifesaving GBV services, such as the clinical management of rape  ( CMR ) , psycho social support  ( PSS ) , legal aid, case management and referral mechanisms, which are unavailable in over 90 per cent of localities in Sudan.
Restrictions imposed due to COVID 19 outbreak, weak capacity of the government and line ministries to provide physical protection and basic services, access of vulnerable population to access medical and social services, provision of physical protection for collection of firewood and fetching water by women and girls, access to land due to presence of armed people, inadequate prevention of crops destruction, ongoing inflation, referral mechanisms, and SGBV response capacity
There have been logistical, security and access challenges, ranging from physical access during the rainy season, recurring episodes of intercommunal violence and factional fighting that also affected the effectiveness of protection responses, durable solutions for IDPs and reintegration of returnees.
Sector partners were able to reach 0.8 million people with treatment of acute malnutrition, covering 48.8 per cent of the target. A total of 0.5 million children were reached with micronutrient supplements while 0.7 million pregnant and lactating women  ( PLW )  received infant and young child feeding  ( IYCF )  counselling accounting for 79 per cent of the target.
More than 631,00 IDP children are currently out of school, with an additional 55,000 IDP children facing severe food insecurity.
The multi sectoral inter agency response was done in collaboration with inter agency partners and co led by Sudan's Commission for Refugees  ( COR ) . The CRP is based on assessments, gaps analysis, and priorities identified by the RCF, the Refugee Working Groups in each State, and the Technical Advisory Groups.
Importantly, the Government of Sudan generously kept the border open to allow civilians crossing the border to seek asylum.
The multi sectoral response plan was further amended to include the COVID 19 response and the emergency refugee response to the Ethiopia's Tigray region crisis, following the influx of more than 50,000 refugees seeking safety in Sudan, in November 2020.
Efforts to support the current humanitarian situation remain necessary as Sudan pursues the path to peace.
The Refugee Consultation Forum  ( RCF )  launched the first Sudan Country Refugee Response Plan  ( CRP )  in 2020 to respond to the critical needs of all refugees living across different states in Sudan.
According to WFP  ( Food Security Monitoring Survey for Q1, 2020 ) , 44 percent of refugee households in Sudan are food insecure
Consequently, the lack of income also undermines refugees' housing security, with many reporting being unable to cover increasing costs for services and food.
Despite all the challenges including implementing a COVID 19 safety measurement while access water and sanitation services, sector partners were able to reach 1.4 million people with water assistance and 600K have received sanitation assistance.
Routine services in hospitals and other health facilities have been affected due to sporadic closures after confirmation of COVID 19 case in the facilities. Routine vaccination  ( Penta3 )  fell by 13 per cent from May 2019 to May 2020, and MCV1 fell by 9 per cent.
Disruptions in services have been reported across the country due to closure of private health facilities, as part of COVID 19 containment measures.
With expected erratic rains due to climate change in the coming years there is a need to prepare for emergency response, mainly through NFIs, and to increase the resilience of at risk refugee populations through better flood preparedness and community based response mechanisms.
For some part of the country, the cost of water increased barrel increased from 50 to 200 per cent. Affected population that depend on fuel powered water system were specifically affected as systems operated at lower pace due to the scarcity of fuel.
Provision of cash support for GBV survivors  ( case by case basis including referral related costs )
In February 2021, the average national retail price of wheat flour in areas where WFP operates was 242.75 SDG per kg, an increase of 36.17 per cent compared to January 2021. This is mainly due to the deterioration in the Sudanese currency during January and February 2021, as Sudan depends on the importation of wheat  ( 70 80 percent of its needs ) .
Nearly 1.3 million of the 7.1 million food insecure people are facing emergency levels of acute food insecurity  ( IPC Phase 4 )  and around 6 million people are facing crisis levels of acute food insecurity  ( IPC Phase 3 ) .
By the end of May, there were 5,173 confirmed COVID 19 cases in Sudan, including 298 fatalities.
Sudan remains far from achieving Universal Primary Education. There are still an estimated 3.5 million children aged 5 13 years who are out of school, with an estimated 250,000 refugee children out of school.
The Shelter/NFI Sector in Sudan faced various challenges in 2020; Economic situation: the ongoing economic crisis and inflation affected the sector activities, especially the procurement of the kits. Some additional delays were experienced to purchase the items as the prices increased during the purchase process.
The ongoing economic crisis continues to be a key driver of deteriorating humanitarian needs, which have been exacerbated by COVID 19. Control and containment measures increase the cost and time for delivering shelter and NFI assistance.
Challenges: Activities were interrupted in some areas during the rainy seasons and intercommunal conflict in West Darfur.
Advocacy for increased availability of services for clinical management of rape and the response to the needs of survivors of GBV.
Enhancement of the quality of service provision and impact monitoring through capacity building of providers on GBV basic concepts, psycho social support, Case management, Clinical management of rape, caring for child survivors, management of WGSSs and coordination
There has been a sizeable increase in the costs of all projects' inputs and services associated with high inflation and extreme devaluation of local currencies against USD.
COVID 19 pandemic exacerbated prevailing conditions. Loss of livelihoods disrupted access to the food value chain and restricted access to the health care system.
Despite efforts by nutrition sector partners, a huge gap remains between the coverage of nutrition services and the needs of the targeted population. The Sudan 2020 HRP, targeted 57.7 per cent of the national SAM burden and 43.8 per cent of the national MAM burden because of financial and capacity constraints, leaving almost 1.5 million children and PLW vulnerable to morbidity and death.
Inflation and currency depreciation have led to shortages of fuel and cash, price increases of imported key commodities, a reduced household purchasing power.
The protection sector also produced a number of analytical reports that were shared with the donors, kept the HCT Protection Task Force informed of the situation, developed advocacy messages for follow up by agencies in relation to the protection situation and humanitarian needs of IDPs and returnees.
Access to protection services remains a concern, coupled with weak rule of law and social protection mechanisms. Approximately 4.7 million people need better access to protection services.
In Sudan, approximately 80 per cent of population depends on agriculture for income generation and livelihoods. Livestock – including trade and movement of cattle, sheep and goats – constitutes a significant source of income.
The Protection Sector led by UNHCR, GBV, Child Protection Sub sectors led by UNFPA and UNICEF respectively carried out regular protection monitoring activities in the field, with their partners and jointly with other agencies. They collected information on physical safety, material safety, legal safety issues, freedom of movement and residence.
Specific protection needs include: expansion and support to community based protection networks  ( CBPN ) , facilitation of conflict sensitive community consultations; implementation of community support projects; protection monitoring and protection by presence; human rights awareness raising, including SGBV prevention, child recruitment and harmful traditional practices; supporting existing and establishing new conflict resolution mechanisms
The deteriorating macroeconomic situation in Sudan has affected all facets of life, including the operations of humanitarian interventions.
Ongoing surveillance has spotted solitary hopper infestations, and a total of 34,600 hectares was surveyed in desert locust summer and winter breeding areas in October 2020, at the Red Sea, River Nile, North Kordofan, Northern and Gedaref states.
Additionally, it is also common for children to have to work and provide additional income for their families, preventing them from attending school and accessing feeding programmes in refugee hosting schools.
In addition, over 90 per cent of refugee children eligible for secondary school are out of school.
Limited livelihood opportunities coupled with high levels of poverty are also linked to the large number of out of school refugee children. As a result, many children are exposed to child labour, early marriage, and onward movement, including smuggling and trafficking.
Additionally, the highest severity of acute food insecurity is recorded in the 61 localities classified as IPC phase 3+ in North Darfur, South Darfur, West Darfur, Central Darfur, East Darfur, Kassala, Red Sea, Blue Nile, White Nile, North Kordofan, South Kordofan, Gadarif, and Northern
Overall, 7.2 million people were estimated to be in need of urgent humanitarian assistance. This represents a 65 per cent increase compared to 2019. Major concern is the 10 out of the 18 states of Sudan, with acute food insecurity are South Kordofan  ( 38 per cent of the state population are food insecure ) , Blue Nile  ( 34 per cent food insecure ) , North Darfur  ( 32 per cent food insecure ) , Central Darfur  ( 30 per cent food insecure ) , West Darfur  ( 30 per cent food insecure ) , Red Sea  ( 28 per cent food insecure ) , Kassala  ( 25 per cent food insecure ) , South Darfur  ( 21 per cent food insecure ) , North Kordofan  ( 21 per cent food insecure )  and East Darfur  ( 20 per cent food insecure ) .
In 2020, 1.5 million conflict affected or otherwise vulnerable children  ( 4 16 years of age )  across all of Sudan needed humanitarian assistance to fulfil their right to education.
Despite the challenging operational environment due to COVID 19 restrictive measures, the Food Security Sector delivered assistance to around 135 localities in 17 states in Sudan through 44 partners. This includes areas with active conflict and hazards whereby the sector developed a robust strategy to reach most vulnerable people  ( i.e. sector reached all 14 states affected by floods ) .
Around 1.3 million of people in need faced emergency levels of acute food insecurity  ( IPC 4, the phase before famine )  and estimate 6 million people under  ( IPC 3 ) . A
The Sudan Humanitarian Fund  ( SHF )  has allocated $75 million of funding in 2020. It had one standard allocation of $42 million in April  ( 56% of allocations )  and further emergency allocations of US$33 million for COVID 19, desert locust, polio, Tigray influx and newly opened area responses.
By sector, 3.8 million people received food assistance, 3.7 million were provided medical consultations, 2.8 million were given access to safe water, 1.6 million received livelihoods assistance, and 1.2 million were assisted by education sector, mainly school feeding.
Health care, sanitation, protection, and education services were affected throughout the country. Inflation resulted in a 200 per cent increase in the cost of medicines and health services, while at the same time the level of medicines imported remained 30 per cent lower compared to 2017.
The unprecedented floods that caused havoc during the rainy season aggravated access challenges. Flooding combined with a difficult physical terrain made roads in several states impassable, causing delays to aid activities particularly during August September
This is most notable in terms of worsening food insecurity: despite a ‘good harvest', it could not counteract the impacts of rising prices. As a result, about 25.5 million people, representing more than half of the population, were suffering from some level of food insecurity between June and September 2020 – the peak of the lean season. This included 7.4 million people in need of food and livelihoods related humanitarian assistance, 1 million more than the same period of 2019. From October 2020, this number reduced slightly to 7.1 million people, but still remained high compared to previous years
Education needs in Sudan remain high with about 67 per cent of primary school aged refugee children remaining out of school and estimates of above 90 per cent being out of school
Lack of individual documentation remains a key driver of refugee vulnerability in Sudan, especially for refugees living in out of camp settlements, as those without documentation are unable to access social services where available, access formal and stable livelihoods opportunities, and face movement restrictions.
Khartoum hosts an estimated 190,000 South Sudanese refugees who live in dire humanitarian conditions, despite renewed access for partners granted by the Government of Sudan in December 2017. Many refugee communities have lived in these areas for decades and have demonstrated considerable resilience in the face of a significant lack of protection and humanitarian assistance over years.
The most affected states were North Darfur, Khartoum, Blue Nile, West Darfur and Sennar. An estimated 177,000 homes were damaged or destroyed after weeks of flooding, putting over 10 million people at a risk of contracting water borne diseases.
Sudan continues to face the cost of climate change in the form of natural disasters, including yearly recurring floods. In 2020, Sudan was hit by the worst flooding in 100 years that affected the lives of nearly 900,000 people across 18 states
The persistent trade deficit combined with reductions in foreign direct investment since the separation of South Sudan in 2011 have driven the devaluation of the Sudanese Pound with the rate on the parallel market declining nine fold since January 2018 from 27 SDGs to the USD to 250 SDGs in November 2020.
The economy has been in crisis due to a recession and high inflation since January 2018. The GDP declined by two per cent in 2018 and 2019, and is expected to decline by eight per cent by the end of 2020.
In September 2019, a 39 month power sharing agreement was reached between military and civilian representatives in Sudan that resulted in the swearing in of a government under Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok and the establishment of the Sovereign Council led by General Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman Burhan.
Over the course of the first year in the transition period, the Government has taken bold steps to advance Sudan's economy, stability, and peace, yet humanitarian needs continue to grow. Some 13.4 million people  ( 29 per cent of the population )  including 7.6 million women and girls, will need humanitarian assistance in 2021.
Of the 1.1 million refugees in Sudan, about 75 per cent  ( 763,000 people )  are from South Sudan. Khartoum and White Nile states host two thirds of all South Sudanese refugees in the country, with Khartoum having the highest number amongst all states.
A year after the start of the political transition in Sudan, humanitarian needs continue to grow across the country, despite progress made in the implementation of the objectives of the 39 month transition period and the peace process. The situation is driven by an economic crisis, exacerbated by COVID 19 containment measures, protracted internal displacement that is yet to find durable solutions, unprecedented flooding in 2020, disease outbreaks, and more than 1.1 million refugees and asylum seekers hosted by Sudan.
( 28 March 2019 ) Overall, rising food and non food prices are likely one of the most significant drivers of food insecurity in Darfur
Violent clashes erupted on 24 January 2021 across numerous Fur villages located in Sharg Aj Jabal, causing many households to flee the area into North Darfur
The main income generating activities in Reif Ashargi are agriculture and livestock husbandry. Veterinary services are available at only six sites.
The main income generating activities observed in this locality are agriculture and small trading. Veterinary services are only available in one village.
Twelve per cent of existing shelters are unoccupied and 53 per cent of the locations visited are currently constructing new shelters.
Mobile network is available across 76 per cent of the locality and most of the population own a radio – 94 per cent listening to non local radio channels.
The main water sources available are hand pumps  ( 78% )  and these are maintained by the community. For 17 per cent of the population, it takes between 30 minutes to one hour for households to collect their water supply – 88 per cent of which is free of charge.
Food security exists as a high priority need in one of the locations in Reif Ashargi. The main reasons for food shortages this past year were the low levels of rainfall, the damage to crops and the lack of finances. Food aid has been provided to eight locations.
In this locality, 71 per cent of the population have access to education. As evident across all localities, there is a greater presence of primary education – only 11 per cent of schools are at a secondary educational level.
Education is a high priority need in eight of the locations in Reif Ashargi. There are 9,188 students enrolled in school, 5,901 of which are females and 4,297 of which are male. Out of the 470 teachers available, only 97 are female.