Sudan’s White Nile State anticipates further influx of S. Sudan refugees

March 4, 2018 (KHARTOUM) – The government of the White Nile State said arrangements are underway to receive the new influx of the South Sudanese refugees.

The Secretary-General of the White Nile State government and chairman of the technical coordination committee for refugee affairs, Al-Tayeb Mohamed Abdallah said his state has so far received 148,065 South Sudanese refugees.

He told the semi-official Sudan Media Center (SMC) that they visited the eight refugee camps in the localities of Al-Salam and Al-Gabalain, saying his state is receiving new flows of refugees through Al-Kuwaik, Al-Migaines and Joda border crossings on a daily bases.

Abdallah further said the White Nile State has received 245 refugees last Saturday, pointing out that they provide them with health services, shelter and food.

Over 2 million South Sudanese refugees have been displaced as a result of the conflict that hit the world’s youngest nation in mid-December 2013.

According to the UN Higher Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), as of 15 January 2018, the total South Sudanese refugee population in Sudan stood at 770,110.

Other sources estimate a total of 1.3 million South Sudanese refugees in Sudan, but this data requires verification.

South Sudanese refugees in Sudan have reportedly been distributed in four states including the White Nile, South Kordofan, East Darfur and Khartoum states, amid concerns the current numbers will rise.

In August 2016, Sudan officially declared that South Sudanese fleeing war in their country will be treated as refugees, which opens the door for the UN to provide them with aid and fund aid programs.

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said 3,000 South Sudanese refugees have arrived in Sudan in the first half of January 2018.

According to UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance (OCHA), an estimated 200,000 new South Sudanese refugees are anticipated to arrive in Sudan in 2018.