S. Sudan: UNICEF supports gov’t response to disaster situations
By Julius N. Uma
September 12, 2012 (JUBA) Several officials from South Sudan’s Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (SSRRC) and the Humanitarian and Disaster Management ministry are currently attending a training on emergency preparedness and response to disaster situations in the young nation.
The three-day workshop, supported by the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), is part of efforts to build capacities in these institutions responsible for the coordination of humanitarian assistance and disaster management in the young nation.
The event, officials told Sudan Tribune, is expected to contribute to the development of a strategic plan for SSRRC’s monitoring and evaluation system of humanitarian activities.
“The roll out of a monitoring and evaluation strategy for humanitarian activities at field level will help to achieve a balanced and equitable humanitarian support. We are committed to deliver humanitarian assistance and be accountable to the public” said Peter Lam Both, the SSRRC Chairperson.
South Sudan is currently numerous humanitarian challenges, owing to the massive influx of Sudanese refugees in its two states of Upper Nile and Unity. The refugees, estimated to be more than 160,000 have fled fighting in Sudan’s Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan states.
The national training, Sudan Tribune has learned, is the culmination of three intensive training workshops UNICEF recently organized at the Greater Equatoria, Greater Upper Nile and Greater Bahr-el Ghazal regions.
About 100 staff from SSRRC state offices in Upper Nile, Western Bahr el Ghazal and Juba, have so far benefitted from these trainings, mainly focusing on strengthening their emergency preparedness and response mechanisms to respond to humanitarian emergencies, effectively.
While opening the three-day workshop in Juba on Tuesday, Yasin Ali Haque, UNICEF South Sudan representative stressed the importance of monitoring the impact of any humanitarian interventions into disaster situations.
“It’s critical to monitor the impact of our humanitarian interventions and to ensure the needs of the most vulnerable are met in respect of the humanitarian principles” she said.
(ST)