I signed a contract extension today.
For another year!
At this point though, I'm only intending to stay another six months.
Six months isn't enough time to really achieve anything in South Sudan, and I feel like I've really only just begun. I came in halfway through a project too, and it took me a while to get my head around everything, so I've still got plenty of energy to devote to this work. I really like the teams I work with and enjoy the work I'm doing. So I'm going back. Bring it on.
The rainy season, and being less able to get out in the field, may also drive me a little bit bonkers. But I want to be able to help plan our activities for next year, so that when the rainy season finishes, we can get out there and implement things. And I want to reward our staff for their hard work through capacity building and training during the downtime.
Seeing South Sudan in its beautiful green glory will also be great. I'm looking forward to wandering through the compound in the evening, probably in my wellies, frogs scattering as I walk, and be able to fall asleep to the cacophany of frogs in the huge puddles that the roads become at this time of year.
I also feel that staying beyond six months might not be so good is that my two best buddies in Rumbek, Rachel and Ollie, will be gone by then. One of the main reasons that I enjoy working in South Sudan is that I have my two fellow musketeers around for fun adventures. While I do enjoy spending time with others in South Sudan, both local and ex-pat, life in Rumbek without them just won't be the same. And then there's that point about going bonkers; without them, my pals who greatly assist me to avoid reaching this mental situation, it may just happen. Still, who knows who I might meet and who might come along to fill that void? But the turnover of people in the humanitarian world is high, and it's difficult to really make lots of good friends. I definitely have two right here at the moment, but they won't be around for long.
But only time will tell. Maybe I'll meet an amazingly beautiful man that will keep me in South Sudan. Ha!
Interestingly, my role may soon be different. There is talk of changing my job description (well, inventing one!) to Public Health Promotion Co-ordinator, instead of Advisor - which will give me direct staff management responsibility (which I do already) plus require me to be more involved in national-level taskforces and cluster meetings in Juba.
Signing on for another year with the same conditions (including salary) when I'll probably be doing more work and spending more time in Juba (less in the field, boo!), instead of waiting to see whether this happens, may have been a bit premature. But I figured what the hell, it secures my position, and I can (hopefully) negotiate it when I get back.
Oh - did I mention I'm just about to jet off home for a month of leave? Woohoo! One good thing about negotiating a contract extension is that I managed to convince HR to give me some time off. Throw in a week's R&R that I haven't yet taken, all of my 6-months-worth of leave in advance, plus 2 days of training, and I've got almost a month of paid holiday. The rest will be unpaid, and I won't have any leave to play with, but meh, it'll be worth it. R&R will tide me over for that time anyway.
So I'm really looking forward to going home. And I leave on Saturday. Yay!
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Let the destruction begin...
I've returned to Rumbek again, and it's so nice to be back. Back with Oxfam's great team, the fun expat crew and our movie nights and pool volleyball, my local friends, hanging out in the square watching the basketball and the traditional dance. Rumbek is certainly my favourite place in South Sudan.
What's NOT so nice though is what the Department of Lands and Planning has done to some of the neighbourhoods and the market around Rumbek town. They're completely flattened. Huge trees are uprooted, houses and fences knocked over, buildings razed to the ground. And it's all in the name of progress.
Since South Sudan has become a new country, the Government is going through a process of subdivision and land allocation to ensure that land ownership is sorted out and town planning is done properly.
The problem with that though, is that the process is completely unfair, corrupt and non-transparent. People's houses that are 'in the way' have been knocked over to allow for the construction of roads, with little (1-2 days) prior warning that they need to move, and no compensation. I have been told that some people are being given new land elsewhere, but it's on the edge of town, and it in no way replaces someone's home in which they have invested a lot of money over a long time to build up. Many land subdivisions are given to 'mates'. Most people are not given anything. They have no choice but to move elsewhere. Our cook Margaret has lost her entire house and is getting nothing. She is completely devastated.
And the strange thing about it is that roads are being built parallel to existing ones, in many cases only tens of metres from the last road - creating unnecessarily small blocks. And unnecessarily destroying peoples' houses, not to mention some of the beautiful big trees that make Rumbek the green, leafy town that I love.
In the case of the market, the government is doing a 'clean up' - any buildings that are not permanent have been destroyed to make way for bricks and concrete. Which means entire blocks of buildings, the type that people can actually afford to build - of bamboo and wood and tin sheeting - are now gone. Even piles of bricks remain where I'm guessing 'semi-permanent' buildings once stood. It's such a crime. Walk down the main drag of Rumbek town and peer down the many small roads leading away from it, and all you see is devastation.
Sure, the town needs to be well planned, and look nice, and progress is inevitable. But there has to be a much more inclusive, consultative and transparent way of doing it. Not to mention some compensation offered. I just wonder how many people have been affected, and how many more are so much poorer than they were before. They are poor enough already, and struggling to make a living, without this. It's horrible.
What's NOT so nice though is what the Department of Lands and Planning has done to some of the neighbourhoods and the market around Rumbek town. They're completely flattened. Huge trees are uprooted, houses and fences knocked over, buildings razed to the ground. And it's all in the name of progress.
Since South Sudan has become a new country, the Government is going through a process of subdivision and land allocation to ensure that land ownership is sorted out and town planning is done properly.
The problem with that though, is that the process is completely unfair, corrupt and non-transparent. People's houses that are 'in the way' have been knocked over to allow for the construction of roads, with little (1-2 days) prior warning that they need to move, and no compensation. I have been told that some people are being given new land elsewhere, but it's on the edge of town, and it in no way replaces someone's home in which they have invested a lot of money over a long time to build up. Many land subdivisions are given to 'mates'. Most people are not given anything. They have no choice but to move elsewhere. Our cook Margaret has lost her entire house and is getting nothing. She is completely devastated.
And the strange thing about it is that roads are being built parallel to existing ones, in many cases only tens of metres from the last road - creating unnecessarily small blocks. And unnecessarily destroying peoples' houses, not to mention some of the beautiful big trees that make Rumbek the green, leafy town that I love.
In the case of the market, the government is doing a 'clean up' - any buildings that are not permanent have been destroyed to make way for bricks and concrete. Which means entire blocks of buildings, the type that people can actually afford to build - of bamboo and wood and tin sheeting - are now gone. Even piles of bricks remain where I'm guessing 'semi-permanent' buildings once stood. It's such a crime. Walk down the main drag of Rumbek town and peer down the many small roads leading away from it, and all you see is devastation.
Sure, the town needs to be well planned, and look nice, and progress is inevitable. But there has to be a much more inclusive, consultative and transparent way of doing it. Not to mention some compensation offered. I just wonder how many people have been affected, and how many more are so much poorer than they were before. They are poor enough already, and struggling to make a living, without this. It's horrible.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Celebrating International Women’s Day in Jamam
March 8 is International Women's Day, celebrated every year to highlight the plight of women around the world and the important role that they play in our society. For the second time in three years, IWD was celebrated in Jamam by Oxfam.
This year's international theme was Connecting Girls: Inspiring futures, but Oxfam chose its own theme to suit the local context: Women and Water; particularly as women are the main caretakers of water in South Sudan - being responsible for its collection, use in cooking, washing and drinking, and for the general health, hygiene and well-being of their families.
I turned up in Jamam about one week before the day and quickly became absorbed in the running-around to organise the event. Gloria, one of our Hygiene Promoters, was the main event coordinator and I was more than happy to help out with the constant to-ing and fro-ing between Jamam and Bounj, an hour away, to distribute invitations to Government representatives, hire sound systems, shelters and chairs, and purchase prizes for participants.
We spent a lot of our time liaising with and buying food for the participating groups that were based in Bounj, Jamam, Kidwa and in the refugee camps. The Jamam market - especially the goat market -made a killing from Oxfam in early March! We delivered food to each participating group so that they could enjoy a lunch of goat, rice and ugali after their efforts, which they cooked up in their communities.
Our EP&R hygiene promoters were responsible for preparing the dancing and drama groups from the Jamam camp; our Public Health team pulled together to get the different local groups involved.
When the day quickly arrived, we were more than ready. We'd sent vehicles to Bounj to collect the dignitaries and to Kidwa for the participating dance groups and Oxfam-trained volunteers; the shelter in front of Jamam Basic School was erected, ready to provide the dignitaries and other invited guests with shade; our IWD t-shirts were apparently on their way; the participating groups had their songs and dramas ready to go, and were already amassing at their starting locations to begin marching to the site. By 9am, hundreds of people had gathered to witness what was going to happen, the Umda and other chiefs from the camp in their blazing white jalabia were seated under the shelter, and the various groups had begun arriving in their brightly coloured sarongs, beautiful beadwork and Oxfam shirts.
Unfortunately the dignitaries in Bounj weren't ready - in fact we weren't sure what they were doing, because we'd sent the landcruiser to Bounj around 7am. So, to stall proceedings, we allowed the different groups to start parading their different traditional songs and dances in the square where everyone had gathered.
Participating groups included:
The performances contained messages on the importance of good hygiene and sanitation practices, including hand washing with soap, drinking safe water, malaria prevention and prevention of diarrhoea through good environmental, food and personal hygiene practices.
Awareness of the event was undertaken by practising marching, dancing and singing in public areas in the lead-up to the day. The various groups were mobilized around two weeks beforehand and received ongoing assistance with their preparations. Various community leaders and local authorities were also mobilized through invitations and asked to raise awareness of the event in their communities. Through Oxfam’s ongoing work with volunteers from the host community and refugee community, the word was spread. On the day of the event, the groups marched around their communities before converging on the event location, and music was also played through the public address system, in order to attract people.
Participating groups in IWD were provided with sodas and biscuits during the celebration, as well as lunch afterwards. Communities agreed to cook it within their villages and the supplies were delivered the day before the event.
Prizes were awarded to the two groups deemed to have performed in the most entertaining, organised and effective manner in terms of communicating water, sanitation and hygiene messages to the crowd.
After the event, the guests were invited to the Oxfam GB compound in Jamam to share lunch with staff. This aimed to build upon the existing relationship with local authorities in order for future Oxfam activities to run more smoothly.
This year's international theme was Connecting Girls: Inspiring futures, but Oxfam chose its own theme to suit the local context: Women and Water; particularly as women are the main caretakers of water in South Sudan - being responsible for its collection, use in cooking, washing and drinking, and for the general health, hygiene and well-being of their families.
I turned up in Jamam about one week before the day and quickly became absorbed in the running-around to organise the event. Gloria, one of our Hygiene Promoters, was the main event coordinator and I was more than happy to help out with the constant to-ing and fro-ing between Jamam and Bounj, an hour away, to distribute invitations to Government representatives, hire sound systems, shelters and chairs, and purchase prizes for participants.
We spent a lot of our time liaising with and buying food for the participating groups that were based in Bounj, Jamam, Kidwa and in the refugee camps. The Jamam market - especially the goat market -made a killing from Oxfam in early March! We delivered food to each participating group so that they could enjoy a lunch of goat, rice and ugali after their efforts, which they cooked up in their communities.
Our EP&R hygiene promoters were responsible for preparing the dancing and drama groups from the Jamam camp; our Public Health team pulled together to get the different local groups involved.
When the day quickly arrived, we were more than ready. We'd sent vehicles to Bounj to collect the dignitaries and to Kidwa for the participating dance groups and Oxfam-trained volunteers; the shelter in front of Jamam Basic School was erected, ready to provide the dignitaries and other invited guests with shade; our IWD t-shirts were apparently on their way; the participating groups had their songs and dramas ready to go, and were already amassing at their starting locations to begin marching to the site. By 9am, hundreds of people had gathered to witness what was going to happen, the Umda and other chiefs from the camp in their blazing white jalabia were seated under the shelter, and the various groups had begun arriving in their brightly coloured sarongs, beautiful beadwork and Oxfam shirts.
Unfortunately the dignitaries in Bounj weren't ready - in fact we weren't sure what they were doing, because we'd sent the landcruiser to Bounj around 7am. So, to stall proceedings, we allowed the different groups to start parading their different traditional songs and dances in the square where everyone had gathered.
The square was a mass of colour and noise, each group dancing in their own unique way with their unique instruments, locally made spears and staffs, feathered costumes, all stamping, chanting and shuffling in unison, and generally having a great time.
When the dignitaries finally did arrive, everyone stopped and stood to attention. People really do respect their 'big people' here in South Sudan - particularly when they're attached to the SPLA. Our guests of honour were the Executive Director of Maban County (representing the Commissioner), the Payam Executive Officer from Jinkwata, and women’s representatives from the SPLM in Maban and Jinkwata Payams.
Their speeches were all very poignant and relevant to the issues of the day, and in addition - as expected - they turned somewhat political, but importantly they emphasised the importance of peaceful co-existence between the host and refugee communities and the sharing of resources, especially water. All speakers also stated that the refugees from Sudan were very welcome in Maban County, which I found heartening. I hoped that their strong words would quash some of the unrest that was brewing between the groups in relation to the sharing of water.
But the desire to keep dancing couldn't be contained for long and the local group from Jamam kept breaking out into dance in the square, flying in the face of the big people. There were plenty of people around them to quickly get them under control, which I found rather amusing.
And then, in what I found a rather amusing but simultaneously bemusing display for International Women's Day, was an impressive but rather male-dominated demonstration from the Taekwondo group from Demazin, Blue Nile. After the two senior members showed off their skills in cutting flaming bricks in half with their bare hands, they then proceeded to give us all a body building demonstration. Can't say I minded, the human body is a beautiful thing, but the underlying masculinity of it all maybe was a little out of place!
Still, the crowd loved it, the dignitaries and chiefs were rather impressed and amused by it, and the two men received huge applause on conclusion of their demonstration to which they responded with equal gusto! Ahh hilarious. But overall, the day was a success, and the importance of women really brought to the fore.
And so I finish with a quote from my colleague John Bosco, from his weblog. He also wrote about IWD from Rumbek, and I found his final conclusion really great:
The best present for the rural women is therefore not one day out of 365 days in a year. It is a set of actions and commitments by governments, aid agencies and other development workers to addressing and reducing the series of problems faced by women. The best present for women is step by step actions/efforts that give women equal access and control to productive resources as men. And a perfect recognition that women, are fully equal to men in rights and all aspects of life.
You can read more about it at http://jbwalesblog.wordpress.com/2012/03/20/the-best-present-for-rural-women/.
This is what IWD is really about - and we should be doing more. One day isn't enough!
I also included the event report that Gloria and I wrote for Oxfam. It might be a bit formal (and possibly boring), but it gives you an idea of how we celebrated the day...
International Women’s Day
Thursday 8th March 2012
International Theme: Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures
Local theme: Women and water
Jamam, Maban County
Upper Nile State - South Sudan
Due to the fact that half of the world’s poor people are women, Oxfam GB puts women at the heart of what we do. Therefore, Oxfam GB held celebrations to mark International Women’s Day 2012 in Jamam.
The Event
His Excellency, the Executive Director of Maban County, gave the keynote speech at the celebration of International Women’s Day on 8th March 2012 in Upper Nile. Oxfam GB coordinated the event and invited representatives from a number of local authorities and humanitarian organisations to attend.
The theme of International Women’s Day 2012 is Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures. However, due to Oxfam GB’s core activities of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene in Maban County and involvement of local communities in these activities, a local theme of Women and Water was chosen. Oxfam GB acknowledges the fact that the issue of water is critical to women due to the important role they play as the primary water caretakers and custodians of good health and hygiene in their homes and communities. As such, they are the ones who understand best the needs and issues related to water. This theme aimed to celebrate and increase awareness of the role women play in providing water.
The event was held at Jamam Basic School in Jamam town, a central meeting point for participating community members who marched from their host communities. Around 2000 people were estimated to have attended.
Community Participation
Groups from the Jamam refugee and Maban host communities performed drama, dance and songs during the celebration of International Women’s Day. Hygiene promotion volunteers from the refugee community were represented, together with Water Management Committee representatives and Community Hygiene Promoters from the host community.
Participating groups included:
§ Jamam Community-Based Organisation (host community)
§ Jamam Basic School Hygiene Club (host community)
§ Kidwa Oxfam volunteers (host community)
§ Drama groups (refugee community)
§ Jamam Camp Hygiene Promotion volunteers
The performances contained messages on the importance of good hygiene and sanitation practices, including hand washing with soap, drinking safe water, malaria prevention and prevention of diarrhoea through good environmental, food and personal hygiene practices.
Traditional dancing groups from the Kidwa Kenya, Gabanet and Soda communities also participated and a Taekwondo group from Demazin, Blue Nile, gave a demonstration.
Speeches
The following guests gave speeches at
International Women’s Day 2012:
- The Executive Director of Maban County (representing the Commissioner)
- The Payam Executive Officer from Jinkwata
- Women’s representatives from the SPLM in Maban and Jinkwata Payams
- Oxfam GB Emergency Preparedness & Response program manager
Key emphases in the speeches were:
- Without women, there is no life – they are the main water providers for their families and communities, and water is life. Women play a vital role in the community, not only because they are the primary water caretakers, but because everyone has a mother!
- The importance of peaceful co-existence between the host and refugee communities, as they are one people, and should live peacefully together. It was also emphasized that sharing of resources, especially water, needs to occur to allow this co-existence and meet the needs of both communities. All speakers stated that the refugees from Sudan were very welcome in Maban County.
Community awareness
Awareness of the event was undertaken by practising marching, dancing and singing in public areas in the lead-up to the day. The various groups were mobilized around two weeks beforehand and received ongoing assistance with their preparations. Various community leaders and local authorities were also mobilized through invitations and asked to raise awareness of the event in their communities. Through Oxfam’s ongoing work with volunteers from the host community and refugee community, the word was spread. On the day of the event, the groups marched around their communities before converging on the event location, and music was also played through the public address system, in order to attract people.
Incentives for community
groups
Participating groups in IWD were provided with sodas and biscuits during the celebration, as well as lunch afterwards. Communities agreed to cook it within their villages and the supplies were delivered the day before the event.
Prizes were awarded to the two groups deemed to have performed in the most entertaining, organised and effective manner in terms of communicating water, sanitation and hygiene messages to the crowd.
Building
relationships with local authorities
The following representatives of local
authorities attended
International Women’s Day 2012:
- Executive Director of Maban County (representing the Commissioner)
- Women’s Representatives from the SPLM in Maban and Jinkwata Payams
- Executive Officers from Jinkwata, Jinmagda and Mhor Ahmer Payams
- Chiefs from the Host and Refugee Communities
- WASH Supervisor from the County Department of Rural Water, Supply and Sanitation
An invitation was also sent to the County
Ministry of Education.
After the event, the guests were invited to the Oxfam GB compound in Jamam to share lunch with staff. This aimed to build upon the existing relationship with local authorities in order for future Oxfam activities to run more smoothly.
It was the first time that the government representatives
had visited the compound, and they were impressed to see what Oxfam has
constructed in Jamam. The Executive Director addressed staff and other guests
and praised the work of Oxfam GB in providing water and sanitation for the
Maban community and the refugees from Sudan. In a positive gesture, he also
offered the full support from the County Commissioner’s office for future Oxfam
GB activities in Maban County.
Achievements from
the event
Based on the various activities performed,
around 2000 individuals were reached with hygiene and sanitation messages. The
event provided an opportunity to celebrate a global event, promote the role of
women in the community and also disseminate important messages on hygiene and
sanitation.
The event also provided an opportunity for
the various groups to interact and learn from each other. This interaction goes
a long way towards building good relationships and achieving peaceful
co-existence between the various communities, a point appreciated and
emphasized by all speakers.
The need for the refugee and host
communities to share resources, in particular the water sources, is vital in
assisting Oxfam with the provision of safe water, a task with which we are
currently overwhelmed.
Challenges
faced
IWD-branded t-shirts were ordered from Juba
for the celebration but failed to arrive despite being ordered some time ago, which demoralised some of the participants. When they arrive, they will be distributed
to participating groups.
There were also many overriding
expectations from participating groups, who expected to receive a great deal
more food and non-food items than what Oxfam was offering them.
Friday, March 2, 2012
An up-date from Up-per Nile
Back in Jamam. My how things change quickly. Every time I come here I don't recognise the place when I first see it.
Jamam refugee camp now has 35,000 people in it. You can really see it; there are people everywhere. And more are predicted to come. I heard a figure of 75,000 more. Yikes.
People are still fleeing violence along the border region between South Sudan and Sudan. Fighting continues on the ground between SPLA (South) and SAF (North) in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states of Sudan. Soldiers are moving up and down, getting in position to best defend their territory.
A good snapshot of things in the country generally is here:
There is a big, looming issue of returnees. A MoU between South Sudan and Sudan in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the two countries included an April 8th 2012 deadline for Southern Sudanese to choose between returning home from the Republic of Sudan or staying on in the north. It is estimated that around 500,000 South Sudanese are still residing in the Republic of Sudan, seven months after South Sudan declared independence. They will be required to leave the north upon the expiry of the deadline or regularize their stay. Out of that number, about 120,000 have already been registered by UNHCR and are ready to depart. So NGOs here are preparing for a huge influx. These people need places to stay while they travel back through South Sudan to their homes, and then assistance when they eventually resettle - land disputes will be a big problem, not to mention housing, water, food etc etc ... so far, the host communities have really borne the brunt of accommodating returnees.
Subsequently, Oxfam are preparing to 'scale up' and respond to these returnees and refugees big time. A lot of returnees aren't expected to come here to Jamam, but many will be coming through the Kosti way-station camp in the border town of Renk, where they wait for onward transport downstream. We have been responding here on a smaller-emergency scale, and were planning to hand over water & sanitation activities in the camp to a local partner; but the influx means we may go back in and really scale up. To complement this we also plan to set up a base in Melut, a town on the Nile which is the next port of call for returnees as they continue travelling downstream. This will be a strategic base for us, to allow us to respond in Renk (north of Melut) or here in Jamam (east). The scale-up is targeting 500,000 people. No mean feat. Which means bringing in a bucketload more staff and supplies in to Upper Nile state. Big planes and boats and stuff, to put it in technical terms.
Anyway, all that aside, here in Jamam things are still all systems go as we continue to provide assistance to refugees seeking safety from the fighting.
We are really struggling to get water. It's our biggest challenge. Our poor drillers have been extremely frustrated because wherever they've been drilling, they've not found water and the boreholes keep collapsing - the black cotton soil is really problematic. Even drilling to 90m hasn't yielded anything. And then our machinery keeps breaking down. Mud pumps are the main problem. We even got Nairobi to send one, and they sent us latrine pumps instead. Hopeless.
So our only option has been to truck water in. We've set up tanks along the road, or large water bladders, and set them up on plinths made of sandbags. From there we've connected the storages to tap stands for people to easily get water. Trucks are carrying water pumped from the borehole in our compound, which we've set up to run on a generator almost 24/7 to pump water into a 24,000L tank. But we haven't been able to keep up with demand, as we've only had trucks that can carry 6,000 L at a time - a miniscule amount. Even with 5 trucks now on the ground, they can only do a limited number of trips and deliver a limited amount of water each day.
But finally we've had some joy. Just this last week, we managed to get a couple of big water tanker trucks from the Adar oil company, which can carry 27,000L each. Which means we can deliver a bucket (truck?!) load more water than we could before! But the problem now is capacity of the boreholes in the vicinity; their yield is not high enough We are pumping water from a large borehole that was originally an oil exploration well, which has a huge yield; only problem is, it's about a 40 minute drive away from where we need the water delivered, which delays water delivery even further. So there's no easy answers to this. Nor is this a cheap exercise. But it's our only option at the moment.
Still, while drilling has been off-line, we've had a consultant in to do a geophysical survey of the hydrogeology so we can know the groundwater system better and target our drilling in areas where it's needed most. And it couldn't be more last minute - we are counting down until the rains come (which apparently start here in May), when drilling is almost impossible and everything gets muddy as hell.
A few other actors have now arrived too, with plans to drill boreholes. We really need their help. They need ours too, in the form of this geophysical survey and information we've collected on the ground - and in terms of coordinating all this drilling.
And in terms of the location of all this drilling, it's in 3 locations: the camps earmarked for refugees. UNHCR has demarcated two additional sites for the anticipated extra 75,000 people to settle. Currently we have 'Jamam 0' and 'Jamam 1'. Jamam 0 is so named because it's only a temporary site and will flood during the rainy season. But it's where a large number of refugees have settled after being trucked in by UNHCR from El Fuj, on the border. There are 35,000 people in Jamam 0 & 1.
Jamam 1, where the 'original' refugees first settled, has now been cleared of any major presence of unexploded ordinance (UXO)(cluster bombs, shells, grenades etc). So have Jamam 2 and 3. Now that this has officially happened, we can start constructing latrines and drilling boreholes in Jamam 1, and then move onto 2 and 3. Our main activities have to date focused on providing water and sanitation to people in Jamam 0. We've been prohibited from doing so in Jamam 1 by UNHCR, due to potential safety risks from UXO. Once there's water and sanitation facilities in Jamam 1, and it starts raining (!), its anticipated that people will move 'over the road' from Jamam 0. Fingers crossed.
So that's where we're at. A whole bunch of refugees and returnees are coming. So are a small army of Oxfam staff as part of this 'scale up'. I don't know how this will affect the long-term program - maybe there won't be one here at all. I hope not. We still need to consider the water & sanitation needs of people that have always lived here. Their needs are just as important.
Jamam refugee camp now has 35,000 people in it. You can really see it; there are people everywhere. And more are predicted to come. I heard a figure of 75,000 more. Yikes.
People are still fleeing violence along the border region between South Sudan and Sudan. Fighting continues on the ground between SPLA (South) and SAF (North) in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states of Sudan. Soldiers are moving up and down, getting in position to best defend their territory.
A good snapshot of things in the country generally is here:
There is a big, looming issue of returnees. A MoU between South Sudan and Sudan in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the two countries included an April 8th 2012 deadline for Southern Sudanese to choose between returning home from the Republic of Sudan or staying on in the north. It is estimated that around 500,000 South Sudanese are still residing in the Republic of Sudan, seven months after South Sudan declared independence. They will be required to leave the north upon the expiry of the deadline or regularize their stay. Out of that number, about 120,000 have already been registered by UNHCR and are ready to depart. So NGOs here are preparing for a huge influx. These people need places to stay while they travel back through South Sudan to their homes, and then assistance when they eventually resettle - land disputes will be a big problem, not to mention housing, water, food etc etc ... so far, the host communities have really borne the brunt of accommodating returnees.
Subsequently, Oxfam are preparing to 'scale up' and respond to these returnees and refugees big time. A lot of returnees aren't expected to come here to Jamam, but many will be coming through the Kosti way-station camp in the border town of Renk, where they wait for onward transport downstream. We have been responding here on a smaller-emergency scale, and were planning to hand over water & sanitation activities in the camp to a local partner; but the influx means we may go back in and really scale up. To complement this we also plan to set up a base in Melut, a town on the Nile which is the next port of call for returnees as they continue travelling downstream. This will be a strategic base for us, to allow us to respond in Renk (north of Melut) or here in Jamam (east). The scale-up is targeting 500,000 people. No mean feat. Which means bringing in a bucketload more staff and supplies in to Upper Nile state. Big planes and boats and stuff, to put it in technical terms.
Anyway, all that aside, here in Jamam things are still all systems go as we continue to provide assistance to refugees seeking safety from the fighting.
We are really struggling to get water. It's our biggest challenge. Our poor drillers have been extremely frustrated because wherever they've been drilling, they've not found water and the boreholes keep collapsing - the black cotton soil is really problematic. Even drilling to 90m hasn't yielded anything. And then our machinery keeps breaking down. Mud pumps are the main problem. We even got Nairobi to send one, and they sent us latrine pumps instead. Hopeless.
So our only option has been to truck water in. We've set up tanks along the road, or large water bladders, and set them up on plinths made of sandbags. From there we've connected the storages to tap stands for people to easily get water. Trucks are carrying water pumped from the borehole in our compound, which we've set up to run on a generator almost 24/7 to pump water into a 24,000L tank. But we haven't been able to keep up with demand, as we've only had trucks that can carry 6,000 L at a time - a miniscule amount. Even with 5 trucks now on the ground, they can only do a limited number of trips and deliver a limited amount of water each day.
But finally we've had some joy. Just this last week, we managed to get a couple of big water tanker trucks from the Adar oil company, which can carry 27,000L each. Which means we can deliver a bucket (truck?!) load more water than we could before! But the problem now is capacity of the boreholes in the vicinity; their yield is not high enough We are pumping water from a large borehole that was originally an oil exploration well, which has a huge yield; only problem is, it's about a 40 minute drive away from where we need the water delivered, which delays water delivery even further. So there's no easy answers to this. Nor is this a cheap exercise. But it's our only option at the moment.
Still, while drilling has been off-line, we've had a consultant in to do a geophysical survey of the hydrogeology so we can know the groundwater system better and target our drilling in areas where it's needed most. And it couldn't be more last minute - we are counting down until the rains come (which apparently start here in May), when drilling is almost impossible and everything gets muddy as hell.
A few other actors have now arrived too, with plans to drill boreholes. We really need their help. They need ours too, in the form of this geophysical survey and information we've collected on the ground - and in terms of coordinating all this drilling.
And in terms of the location of all this drilling, it's in 3 locations: the camps earmarked for refugees. UNHCR has demarcated two additional sites for the anticipated extra 75,000 people to settle. Currently we have 'Jamam 0' and 'Jamam 1'. Jamam 0 is so named because it's only a temporary site and will flood during the rainy season. But it's where a large number of refugees have settled after being trucked in by UNHCR from El Fuj, on the border. There are 35,000 people in Jamam 0 & 1.
Jamam 1, where the 'original' refugees first settled, has now been cleared of any major presence of unexploded ordinance (UXO)(cluster bombs, shells, grenades etc). So have Jamam 2 and 3. Now that this has officially happened, we can start constructing latrines and drilling boreholes in Jamam 1, and then move onto 2 and 3. Our main activities have to date focused on providing water and sanitation to people in Jamam 0. We've been prohibited from doing so in Jamam 1 by UNHCR, due to potential safety risks from UXO. Once there's water and sanitation facilities in Jamam 1, and it starts raining (!), its anticipated that people will move 'over the road' from Jamam 0. Fingers crossed.
So that's where we're at. A whole bunch of refugees and returnees are coming. So are a small army of Oxfam staff as part of this 'scale up'. I don't know how this will affect the long-term program - maybe there won't be one here at all. I hope not. We still need to consider the water & sanitation needs of people that have always lived here. Their needs are just as important.
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