300 Sudanese arriving in Egypt daily, says UN official
February 13, 2024 (CAIRO) – About 300 Sudanese refugees arrive in Egypt daily, a United Nations official said, adding that 45% of the refugees are Sudanese.
“In the latest crisis in Sudan, we received above 300,000 families. The Egyptian Red Crescent was there from the first early moments, helping people to cross the border safely and transporting them to the different locations in Egypt,” Elena Panova, UN Resident Coordinator in Egypt said during the interview.
“Sudanese in Egypt are not clustered into camps, but they live throughout the country,” she added.
Panova said the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Martin Griffiths, allocated special funds from the Central Emergency Relief Fund (CERF) to enable them scale up the response quickly after the first refugees started arriving in Egypt.
“On the route the migrants [are traveling], we installed water and sanitation facilities, mainly by UNICEF, simple things like toilets. WFP provided food, cash assistance to 270,000 of the new arrivals,” she stated.
The official said the UN in the process of meeting immediate needs of refugees.
“We also work closely with the Government to understand what the needs are for more long-term resilient support when it comes to livelihoods and specifically talking about education and health services,” stressed Panova.
According to the official, service centres have been established at entry points.
“We provide humanitarian relief services, hygiene kits, food and essential supplies, issue papers for those without identification, and psychosocial support for children and women,” she remarked.
A 10-month war in Sudan between its armed forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has devastated the country’s infrastructure, prompted warnings of famine and displaced millions of people inside and outside the country.
Last week, UN appealed to countries not to forget the civilians caught up in the war in Sudan, calling for $4.1bn to meet their humanitarian needs and support those who have fled to neighbouring countries.
Half of Sudan’s population or 25 million people, need humanitarian assistance and protection, while more than 1.5 million people have fled to the Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia and South Sudan, according to the UN.
(ST)