Japan, US offer assistance to flood-stricken Sudan, as SAF steps in to help
August 12, 2013 (KHARTOUM) –The United States and Japan said on Monday that they are providing relief supplies to help alleviate suffering of people affected by floods that hit different areas of Sudan amid heightened fears over forecasts projecting more rainfall in the next couple of days.
The statement noted that since early August, heavy rainfall and resultant flash flooding have affected approximately 147.000 people across eight states in Sudan, including more than 84,000 in Khartoum, damaging or destroyed houses and public infrastructure.
The embassy added that this additional humanitarian assistance will support the International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC) and Red Crescent Societies (RCS) for ongoing needs assessment in coordination with a local partner and to provide immediate relief assistant to communities.
“Our emergency contribution of $50,000 is in addition to more than $147 million in United States government funding to humanitarian partners to provide assistance in Sudan this fiscal year”, added the statement.
The Japanese ambassador to Khartoum, Ryoichi Horie, for his part, said in the handover ceremony for emergency assistance in response to Sudan’s floods disaster, that his country’s aid includes tents, water purifiers, electric generators, sleeping pads and other items worth 16 million yen, which is equivalent to $166,000.
Horie announced that an airplane carrying some of the emergency relief goods will arrive in Khartoum on Monday for the sake of supporting the victims’ daily life in Sudan.
The Japanese ambassador extended condolence and sympathy to those who suffered from the floods disaster, pointing that hundreds of thousands of people are still in urgent need of essentials such as foods, water, and tents.
He added that Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is also supporting the residents of ‘Maraabiiu Al-Sharif’ in Khartoum State by distributing basic foods such as rice, oil, sorghum, wheat and other commodities.
Today Sudan’s defense minister, Abdel-Rahim Mohamed Hussein, has issued a directive asking all military personnel in Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) to offer support for the affected populations, calling for allocating all army resources to help them.
SAF spokesperson, Al-Sawarmi Khalid Saad, said that the defense minister ordered provision of all possible assistance to the affected, adding that the Air Force continues its intensive efforts surveying the affected areas as well as moving government officials and aiding the affected.
He pointed that SAF had provided four boats and an ambulance to evacuate the affected people in Maraabiiu Al-Sharif to the military hospital in al-Ailafoon.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a statement that it has provided, along with its partners, a range of emergency relief items, including tents, plastic sheeting, blankets, water cans, buckets and mosquito nets from its emergency stockpiles in Khartoum state.
“Other emergency support is currently being mobilized, particularly food, shelter, water, sanitation, hygiene and health services,” OCHA said.
The statement stressed that the UN and its partners remain committed to assisting flood-affected communities and supporting the Government’s relief efforts throughout the country.
Today the Qatar state news agency (QANOL) confirmed that the Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, has ordered dispatch of urgent relief to Sudan, on board of two cargo planes.
The 80-tonne aid is an expression of Qatar’s stand along with Sudan and its people to counter the effects of the heavy rains and floods that swept through some of its areas recently, an official at the Qatari foreign ministry told QANOL.
Sudan official news agency (SUNA) announced that the first plane arrived in Khartoum in the early hours of Tuesday.
The Sudanese foreign minister Ali Karti today chaired a meeting on how to procure foreign assistance which has so far been meager compared with level of help provided by world nations during the 1988 floods.
UAE news agency (WAM) quoted the Speaker of the Arab Parliament Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Jarwan as appealing Arab countries, Arab League, Red Crescent, Red Cross, regional and international organisations to provide urgent humanitarian relief to the Sudanese people.
KIIR OFFERS CONDOLENCES
The Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today has received a message of condolence from South Sudan president Salva Kiir to his Sudanese counterpart Omer Hassan al-Bashir expressing his sympathy for flood victims and losses resulting from the heavy rainfalls that hit Sudan this month.
In a related issue, the Sudan People Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) called on the government to declare the affected areas of Sudan disaster areas.
“It is the biggest floods witnessed by Sudan since 1946 and 1988, and the floods expose the inefficiency and inability of the corrupt government of the National Congress [Party], which continues to deny the magnitude of the disaster and it continues to demonstrate a lack of capacity and concern,” said a statement signed by SPLM-N Secretary General Yasir Arman.
“The SPLM-Sudan repeats its earlier calls on the National Congress government to take this situation seriously and to declare a state of emergency, to identify the areas affected as disaster areas, and to allow the regional and international agencies, especially the United Nations, to intervene and to provide the necessary assistance,” Arman said.
The heavy rains and floods that hit different areas in Sudan in the past few days have lead to the death of at least 60 people and injured dozens as well as destroying thousands of homes. Many ordinary citizens voiced rage over poor preparations by the government and inadequate response to the floods.
Yesterday, the Civil Defense Council in the Nile state announced that 36 people were killed as a result of the floods and that 5,000 homes have collapsed either partially or completely. This has caused 1,600 families to be homeless, it added.
The Sudanese Red Crescent Society and the Commission for Voluntary and Humanitarian Work estimated last week that 98,500 people have been affected in Khartoum, River Nile, Blue Nile, North Darfur, South Darfur, Northern and Red Sea states between 1 and 4 August.
The states in Sudan that were most affected included Khartoum (56,000), River Nile (33,000), West Kordofan (12,000), North Darfur (8,000), Blue Nile (6,000), Red Sea (3,000), Northern (1,000) and South Darfur (1,000).
Drainage is poor in the capital of Sudan, where even a little rain can cause flooding, but this year’s water surge was unusually severe.
Local officials said that ten people were killed last week including eight family members as in Sudan’s twin capital of Omdurman and thousands of homes were damaged.
(ST)